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This Album Is Like A Storm Tower If It Had Firepower Nov 13, 2009
Ever the creative genius, Ryan Adams is always on the lookout for the next great song, and ever dedicated to the craft of the music, Adams tends to recharge his creative juices by doing something completely different from his previous work. In this case, it means going under the banner of Ryan Adams and the Cardinals, even though a few of his previous albums were with the Cardinals as his band. Whatever works for the man. Cardinology is a laid-back effort, with less studio processing, and nearly a complete return to Adams' Alt Country roots.
Highlights Include:
Fix It
Magick
Let Us Down Easy
Sink Ships
Some have compared the album to what Bono would sound like if he went alternative country, but it has the traits of a John Mayer album. Adams per usual is always has poignant and catchy lyrics, and he sure knows how to craft a song. And he doesn't get stuck in any ruts either. Some songs sound like his previous work, a gospel album, or a good old fashioned garage rock album. Of course I'm referring to the album highlight "Magick." While ever so short, the song packs a hard punch in the short time it has, becoming sort of garage rock political anthem, complete with missile strikes and zombies. The lyrics are superb on every fashion, and the melody is simply stunning. It's certainly the best upbeat track Adams has ever done. Frankly, instead of the mellow and reflective sound the album has, I would have much preferred a lot more tracks like this, and I think Adams would have done an amazing job with it, that was still separate from his "Rock N' Roll" album.
On the downside, quite a few tracks are very forgettable, and others fail to make that much of an impression, even though they have their perfectly good elements to them. It's almost as if the mellow mood drags the album down, and kills it by the end of the album, because as soon as the album peaks with Magick, it's mostly downhill from there. The sound has been done better by Adams, and compared to a few of its competitors in 2008, it's simply blown away for the most part.
If you've ever heard Ryan Adams and the Cardinals live, you'll also know that they're simply entrancing to listen to. Their energy, and the sheer skill in how they take their craft, it's a great show. This energy and skill doesn't translate to the album however, and I think this is the album's ultimate downfall. It just doesn't showcase the real Ryan Adams and the Cardinals.
This album happens to be Adams' last album for a while as it seems he's taken an indefinite hiatus from music, and he leaves on one of his strongest efforts. But the thing about Adams is he always had the potential to break into genius, and after a decade of searching for his magnum opus in a variety of different styles, he never quite found it. Ultimately, I think Adams got discouraged, as did many who followed his career. There would always be those strong tracks, but ultimately something or other wouldn't work, and the work would founder. I personally think he'll find his magnum opus when he returns, but until then, Adams leaves Cardinology as his last work. It's a mighty fine work, but not a particularly solid one.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 A different kind of RA & the Cardinals album Oct 11, 2009
Cardinology is an album that will upset some, anger many, and cause others to rejoice. It's an album that is mostly about Ryan Adams coming to terms with his life and career in music. The best advice I can give you is don't go into this album thinking of the Ryan Adams from the Gold/Heartbreaker era. If you do your going to be disappointed. Instead look for a more mature singer/songwriter who has refined his music to the best of his ability.
When I first heard Cardinology I wasn't sure what to make of it. It was so drastically different from the Cardinals other albums that it left me a little confused. It has taken me almost a year to finally realize just how wonderful this album really is. It starts off strong with Born Into A Light and it doesn't let up until the last note of Stop has been played. Cardinology has zero fluff and isn't afraid of getting straight to the point. It's a tightly refined and short album clocking surprisingly early for most Ryan Adams fans. As you well know, Ryan Adams is a verteran in singing about loss and love. The difference with Cardinology is that he's also facing these problems with a sense of closure and maturity that we started to see with Easy Tiger. My personal favorites off of this one would have to be Let Us Down Easy, Cobwebs, Evergreen, and Born Into A Light. It's hard to pick favorites though because every single song adds something different to the album.
No it isn't much like what we've heard from the Cardinals before. No it isn't much like Ryan Adams solo career. No it isn't much like Whiskeytown. Instead Ryan Adams gives us something both unique and refreshing to his long catalogue of music. Ryan Adams has taken a step back from music after this release. This is definitely a good one to leave his fans interested and waiting for his eventual return to music. Lets hope that this isn't the last we hear from him.
Polished Tunes of Enjoyment Aug 06, 2009
I am a huge Ryan Adam's fan with the "Love Is Hell" album being my absolute fave of mine by Ryan. This is an artist who knows how to pen a song down and crank out albums like it's no tomorrow. I bought this album the day it came out, popped the disc in and let the tunes sink in. Honestly, I was in a blah state of mind that day last year. Cardinology was missing the edginess of many of his previous works and just seemed too polished. Despite my initial reaction, I kept playing these tunes from beginning to end with no skipping...yes this album might be a grower for fans who love his older material. The stand out tracks for me are Fix It, Magick, Cobwebs, Natural Ghost, and what a beautiful way to end album with the deep feeling of Stop.
I had my first opportunity to see Ryan open for Oasis back in Dec. I was blow away by Ryan's presence on stage. Listen up guys, this album is to be played LOUD. Seeing the band play this album at maximum decimal and energy put an entirely new light on this album for me. It will do the same for you...so crank it!!!
Is this Ryan Adam's last album as he broke up with the Cardinals and has a hearing condition? I hope not! Ryan is still a very young artist who I believe his best is yet to come. However, he did recently marry Mandy Moore in a very secretive way back in the spring and has gone awol from his Tweets for months now. One can only hope he is sitting quietly somewhere with or without his new wife penning more greatness to come our way.
All of Ryan's albums have a unique sound to them. Cardinology's polished touch is no different. Highly recommend all his stuff.
This is a testament to the greatness of this artist - Ryan Adams. Jul 24, 2009
I have loved the music of Ryan Adams since the days of Whiskeytown. The man knows how to write a song - a good song. He can sing, he can play, and he can write words that hit you in the heart. This man has soul. He also knows how to record a great record - and this is one great record!
Instead of writing a whole bunch of stuff, I figured this time I will just tell you what I think each song reminds me of; more specifically - what artist each song reminds me of. ... Why? ... Because I have never heard an album before by one person or band that sounded like so many other different artists and bands - and great bands to boot. This is a testament to the greatness of this artist - Ryan Adams.
Here we go:
Track #1 - Warren Zevon ... Track #2 - Matthew Sweet ... Track #3 - U2 ... Track #4 - Lenny Kravitz ... Track #5 - Rufus Wainwright ... Track #6 - Boz Scaggs ... Track #7 - Nils Lofgren ... Track #8 - Lou Reed ... Track #9 - Jeff Buckley ... Track #10 - Jack Johnson ... Track #11 - Karl Wallinger ... and Track #12 - Neil Young. ... Now, is that incredible or what?
I love this album. I think you will, too.
... YOWZA! - George Koumantzelis / The Aeolian Kid
1 of 5 found the following review helpful:
 Seriously? THIS is Ryan Adams? Jul 22, 2009
I am extremely disappointed in this CD, but perhaps it is because I have never listened to any of Ryan's albums with the Cardinals, and was expecting something very different. I felt that all of the angst, desperation, and genuine feeling that I expect from and love about Ryan Adams was completely missing from every track here. This sounded almost born-again to me, like an easy-listening cop-out... like a complete diversion from everything I had come to love about Ryan's music.
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