Cardinology - Dark Publications

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Editorial Reviews:

Album Description
The Cardinals--Ryan Adams (vocals, guitar, keys), Neal Casal (guitar, vocals), Chris Feinstein (bass, vocals), Jon Graboff (pedal steel, vocals) and Brad Pemberton (drums)--have confirmed an October 28 release for Cardinology, the band's latest collection of all-new studio material for the Lost Highway label.

Album Description
Although the album's title may lead you to believe that this is a compilation, Cardinology is, in fact, a new album! Like its predecessor Easy Tiger, which TIME magazine hailed as "a career breakthrough," Cardinology is a concise and focused collection of twelve unadorned gems. The Cardinals are: Ryan Adams (vocals, guitar, keys), Neal Casal (guitar, vocals), Chris Feinstein (bass, vocals), Jon Graboff (pedal steel, vocals) and Brad Pemberton (drums).

Customer Reviews: Read 47 more reviews...

3 out of 5 stars

Ryan plays safe and loses his magic October 28, 2008
16 out of 21 found this review helpful

I love Ryan. I have pretty much enjoyed the heck out of every previous release. If I had to choose a least favorite I would say Gold.

As far as Cardinology is concerned, I think all the critics who ragged on Ryan's rate of production finally got what they want. This is Ryan's safest, most predictable album. The first time I listened to it, I hated it. The melodies are not as catchy, and the writing seemed derivative of earlier stuff. There was not a single song that took me out of my head and just made me marvel at this man's talent.

On further listening, the lyrics are deeper and more introspective than I thought. He's in his post-drug, post-bad relationship phase where he is examining the drugs and the relationships. The overall vibe is a little Grateful Dead mixed with Ryan's more confessional side. All audible trace of his North Carolina roots are pretty much gone. It's weird to here him sing about walking uptown in Manhattan looking for Central Park. I know he has lived in New York for many years now, but it doesn't really fit into his music very well. He sounds like a tourist.. but I digress.

The real story here is the magic (no pun intended) is gone from the music. This is all craftsmanship.The songs are good, but overwrought and predictable. There is no strange, inexplicable beauty like "Halloweenhead" that makes you shake your head, laugh, and get down. There is no epic beauty like "Dear John" from JCN. And unfortunately, there's no song on par with anything from Heartbreaker.

In general, the vibe is very downtrodden and reflective. This vibe is pretty uniform from song to song as well. This definitely creates a distinct mood, but it's a mood I don't think many folks will want to be in for too long (especially when the melodies are kind of a drag).

Honestly, I hope he comes out with a solo album soon. Where is the crazy, unpredictable Ryan who wrote some of the best country and rock music ever put on wax? Was that all a pose before he found his more serious, post-drug, analytical writing style? Who knows. I wish him the best.

4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable and solid effort October 29, 2008
16 out of 21 found this review helpful

"RYAN ADAMS IS THE SONGWRITING GENIOUS (sic) OF OUR MILLENIUM" proclaims one ecstatic reviewer on this page, while others on the opposite side of the spectrum urge the reader to go buy Cold Roses instead. Obviously this disc is divisive among the various camps of Ryan Adams fans, and that's surprising to me given how straightforward and pleasing this music sounds. But then, I am a relative newcomer to the world of Ryan Adams and the Cardinals so perhaps there's more to this than I'd think.

A bit of background. I have all the Whiskeytown material (or at least I think I do, I bought the 3 CDs available at the time) plus a copy of Heartbreaker, but after that I got off the train. Ryan's output became confusing and difficult to follow (stylistic jumps, overlong albums and a plethora of new material of dubious quality) and the music media often cast him as a whiny, narcissistic baby which is always a turnoff (quite frankly I usually don't care about such things but some of the stories did have an impact on whether I wanted to give my money to this guy). But recent positive reviews of Easy Tiger and reports that Adam has cleaned up his act and decided to focus on his music with more seriousness of purpose got me interested. This album is where I got back on the train and I'm happy I did so.

Adams is apparently one of those guys who has absorbed a lot of influences over the years. I'm not sure how old he is but I think he's probably at least about a half-decade younger than myself, which means he grew up in the era of alternative rock. However it's also clear that he's spent some time with classic rock as well - possibly the Grateful Dead and/or the Eagles - as well as the classic country stuff that formed the backbone of the Whiskeytown sound. Thus the album sounds both modern (the production is rich, not unlike a U2 record) and classic, which to me is appealing. Songs like "Cobwebs" reflect more of the 80s alt-rock influence, while "Go Easy" falls into more of the classic rock camp. The closing track "Stop" is beautiful and shows that Adams has learned something from whatever rehab he's been in. Somehow it all gels, the various threads coming together to create a song cycle that is appealing and sounds of a piece.

Now to finish where I started, this may be the closest thing we have to the "classic rock of the new milleneum," but I wouldn't call this a work of genius. It's just a good, solid album that I know I'll still enjoy years down the road, and that's enough to make me happy. It's also enough to make me want to check out Cold Roses and see what I've been missing. Score one for Adams - good job, mate.

4 out of 5 stars

Cardinology October 28, 2008
12 out of 13 found this review helpful

Cardinology is my introduction to the world of Ryan Adams, and I have to say, I'm rather pleased with it. It's obvious that Adams is a man who reveres the classics, as sounds of classic country, Elton John, and especially Neil Young are very prevalent in the music, working into a seamless blend which results in something greater than the sum of its parts. The music runs through the typical gamut of moods for a modern indie rock musician, hitting all the high points of ballads, slow rockers, barn burners, and country folk mashups. Adams has a distinctively Neil Young-ish voice, which I suppose can either be a great asset or a terrible burden depending upon the listener. Personally, I dig his voice, which lends itself easily to the variety of styles seen on this record.

The individual songs are solid, but just like with the albums various styles, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. While no individual song really stuck out to me as an instantly appealing, needs-to-be-on-infinite-repeat kind of track, there were none I really disliked. I think fans of Adams will no doubt enjoy this record, and as I've seen, it may not be a bad place for newcomers to start.

7.5/10

5 out of 5 stars

Cardinology Is An Instant Classic October 28, 2008
6 out of 10 found this review helpful

You would be hard pressed to find a more avid fan of Ryan Adams. I have long followed his work as a solo artist and as the frontman for The Cardinals.

Cardinology in my opinion is one of the best albums Adams has ever been involved with. Although completely different sylistically from Cold Roses and Jacksonville City Nights, this album ranks right along side those two as the best.

A must have for any fan of Adams, and anyone wanting an introduction can jump right in and enjoy.

1 out of 5 stars

Very Disappointing October 29, 2008
6 out of 20 found this review helpful

He's burnt out. For years he released incredible album after incredible album, three in one year! Cold Roses is easily the pinnacle of his work. An album that is in constant rotation in my stereo and on my play lists. As well as practically every other Ryan Adams/Cardinals album, plus a little Whiskeytown. All of his albums prior to 2005 are so eclectic, he has an album for almost any mood your in. 2005 saw the height of his career though, and he won't likely return. Easy Tiger was a hard sell for me. After several times listening to it, it finally stuck with me. Noticeably different from most of his other albums, but there was something about I truly dug and still do. After hearing the Follow the Lights EP I could not even believe this was the same guy who wrote nine of my favorite albums of all time. I mean I almost had to do a double take to see if I was really listening to Ryan Adams. At the time I thought, okay, maybe the two "new" songs on the album were some type of mistake, this could not possibly be the same Ryan Adams, and certainly not an indication of where he and The Cardinals were headed. And then I heard Cardinology. I can't really put into words how I feel about it. I'm just completely disappointed that this is really who he is now. Maybe that's cool for you. Maybe you'll dig it. But I find this album to be outside the realm of what Ryan Adams was for me. I still love his other works and will always, but I doubt this record will find it's way into my heart like all his others. Like I said, maybe this is your thing, but it's not mine.

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