REVIEW

Prolific Troubador shows restraint, maturity on new LPIt’s become almost a sport to bash Ryan Adams. Not that he has tried at all to make it easy on himself. Boorish concert behavior, drunken telephone tirades to critics, and releasing slap dash albums seemingly just because he can. But in the 18 (gasp! Has it ben that long?) Months since the release of the brooding, quiet 29, we’ve not heard much from Adams, aside from a slew of insipid hip hop on his website and promises of a lengthy box set. Maybe we should be surprised he is even around to release any new music. The final, funeral moments of the song _Voices_ made you wonder if he even wanted to be here with us. The quiet, dark days swallowing Adams whole have mercifully ended, _Easy Tiger_ came out today.One of the knocks on the peak and valley consistency of Adam’s discography is the thought that he just plain tries to reach to far. Perhaps, however his new release shows itself to be conservative, maybe even boring on first listen. But dig deeper into the 13 lush tracks on _Easy Tiger_ and you will find this not to be the case. Could it actually be that Adams actually put thought and effort and discipline into an album, doing it over and over again until he gets it right? It would appear so.Each song here feels crafted, and cared for by Adams and his band, The Cardinals. The slap dash feel of Adams previous work is replaced here with deliberate skill and an attention to finished product. And the songs here are _good_. The Cardinals crank out a mellow Nashville backbeat dustier and more whiskey flavored than anything commercial coming from said Country music Mecca these days. It’s country /pop/rock without that awful glossy sheen being cranked out daily there. Nashville aside, this album, like 2001's _Gold_ owes more to 70's storytelling and AOR radio than anything truly country. Yet it’s most effective moments come from the late night sounds of the acoustic numbers. Tracks like _Oh My God, Whatever, Etc_, and _Pearls On A String_, recall Adams most folksy _Heartbreaker_ moments. Number such as these balance well with more upbeat FM moments like _Goodnight Rose_ and _Two Hearts_. It’s like the greatest Glenn Campbell album ever.There is certainly a more level headed, secure Ryan Adams presented here on _Easy Tiger_. He refreshed, singing with more conviction and pure confidence than anything on _29_. Perhaps the time off cleared his head of all the non sequitur prose and dead end four bar blues running through his head. Or maybe sobriety and the slow progression of age have softened his outlook and slowed his angst somewhat, leading him down a contented path of discovery. Maybe we’ll not soon know the answer. Maybe that answer lies in the pedal steel washed stories here, stories peeking around clouds trying to find the light, light Adams has finally found, and wants us to see, too.