Garfield

AMG Review of Garfield

MacKenzie Wilson
All Music Guide

Quirky songmaster Adam Green took a break from Moldy Peaches in fall 2002 to release his debut solo album, Garfield. Slightly sticking to his anti-folk formula, Green offers an ironic musical twist on Garfield, and it's surprisingly charming. While songs like the agtime gem "My Shadow Tags on Behind" and the banjo romp "Her Father and Her" are poetically frank, Green is keenly aware of what socially surrounds him. He's barely in his twenties but comes off with a shrewdness similar to Lou Barlow and Green's favorite, Tim Hardin. "Dance With Me" is Garfield's brightest pop moment. Layered percussion twirls around Green's low vocal brooding and a hushing woodwinds section. Green sweetly describes a moment with a crush he once admired from afar and he's weirdly romantic in doing so. Garfield is Green's musical storybook of the bruised; Lou Reed/Iggy Pop-esque vocals and spiky riffs highlight love's defeat on "Baby's Gonna Die Tonight," but don't forget that Green is a lovesucker. He's also a humorist of sorts -- pay attention to "Mozzarella Swastikas." Garfield is an impressive departure from Green's Moldy Peaches persona. He doesn't even use the word "turd" in any of his songs. [Original versions of "Dance With Me," "Bleeding Heart," and "Computer Show" can also be found on Green's self-titled EP.]