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:: Release Info:
::
:: Artist......> Adam Mcintyre
:: Title.......> Nothing Means Anything
:: Label.......> Headphone Treats
:: Genre.......> Indie
:: Rip.Date....> 08.25.2005
:: Street.Date.> 00.00.0000
:: Source......> CDDA
:: Quality.....> VBRkbps - Full Stereo
:: Play Time...> 58:53 min
::
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:: Track Listing:
::
:: 01. Your Only Friend
:: 02. Half Dead
:: 03. Nothing Means Anything
:: 04. The Way Things Used to Be (Part One)
:: 05. Love is the Answer
:: 06. Smile
:: 07. Every Day is Christmas
:: 08. Feel this Way Again
:: 09. Can't Stop Crying
:: 10. Fairytale
:: 11. The Way Things Used to Be (Part Two)
:: 12. Songs for Heather
:: 13. Fireworks
:: 14. Cotton Candy
:: 15. I Need You
:: 16. Love is A Minor Key
:: 17. (Untitled)
::
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:: Release Notes:
::
:: "An emerging pop artist usually doesn't make such leaps - but
:: this would be the equivalent of The Beatles jumping from
:: Please Please Me, their first, directly to Help! or Rubber
:: Soul. I'm speaking of the sophomore offering by Montgomery,
:: Alabama native Adam McIntyre.
::
:: His 2003 debut, Rockstars & Superheroes, was a power-chord
:: driven rallying cry of arrival for McIntyre. The opening song
:: "Kids" charged in with thumping anticipation, emulating (or
:: sampling from) the sound of an actual gig. And lest people
:: think McIntyre was just singing to a general 'you', he gave a
:: nod to "the kid in the front who never ever misses a show/You
:: never see anybody with him, his only friend is rock and
:: roll." The sweet willingness to immediately ally himself with
:: the underdog is a window into McIntyre's depth of perception
:: and heart.
::
:: By contrast, Nothing Means Anything is a virtual cathedral
:: consisting of numerous stained-glass windows. For the
:: uninitiated, here are some touchstones: McIntyre's vocal
:: styling is akin to Matthew Sweet, but with a broader range a
:: la Glenn Tilbrook. Lyrically, he is capable of being as raw
:: as Jeff Tweedy or as pop-minded as Jellyfish; and
:: instrumentally, he is in a rare class by himself, as he has
:: played almost all of the instruments on this disc.
:: Ultimately, any influence real or perceived is irrelevant, as
:: the results are uniquely a one-man statement.
::
:: Nothing Means Anything is a song cycle, chronicling a year in
:: the life of McIntyre - a messy trip through "divorce,
:: desperation, and deliverance through new-found love." Indeed,
:: this is the Portrait of the Artist as The Underdog, but never
:: cloying. When McIntyre comes out of the gate with the
:: seemingly-breezy "Your Only Friend" by declaring "It's hard",
:: the listener might worry. As the story line progresses, and
:: our rockstar/superhero is putting on the headphones and
:: turning to music to block out the pain of a disintegrating
:: relationship, more worry might set in. Or rather, something
:: wonderful happens: there's a recognition that this singer -
:: ensconced in a comfortable studio - is actually a lot like
:: the next guy. Quite simply, the tune is an amped-up, updated
:: counterpart to The Beach Boys' "Add Some Music".
::
:: McIntyre doesn't eschew his earlier fanbase, however, as the
:: second track "Half Dead" delivers the hard-rocking,
:: power-chord goodies in spades, with the scathing lead-guitar
:: break that leaves the jaw dropped at its brilliance.
:: Reminiscent of his earlier efforts, at first blush - but oh,
:: that's too simple of a reading, for the thrash-and-bash
:: mirrors the vitriol and brashness of an extremely bad
:: breakup. This is not completely moshpit fodder. And with the
:: line "I have to believe there is someone out there who is
:: tired of dying on the inside," McIntyre offers up sheer
:: poetry. You see, if this disc is a reflection of McIntyre's
:: spirit and experience, then we are looking at a man who
:: really is wearing his heart on his sleeve. But he's not
:: content to just let that be, and to bubble over. He wants to
:: understand how he arrived at this point. "Love Is the Answer"
:: is the hook-laden song that acts as the counterpart to the
:: previously discussed tune, where the same amount of drive is
:: now refashioned into something affirming and uplifting; it's
:: defiant as much as "Half Dead" was desperate.
::
:: McIntyre takes a series of unexpected detours, which really
:: mirrors the course of life, relationships, and love. One of
:: the kindest detours can be found in "Song for Heather", which
:: showcases jaunty keyboards and mid-'60s "doo-doo" harmonies a
:: la The Beach Boys or Turtles, laced with a baroque woodwind
:: frame. This is followed by my favorite track on the album,
:: "Fireworks" - its pulse is acoustic, its lyrics are deeply
:: impressionistic, and the harmonies absolutely melt the heart.
:: We need more harmonies like this on the next disc; McIntyre
:: parcels them out here and on "Cotton Candy", probably in the
:: interest of restraint. But when you've got it, flaunt it.
::
:: The whole affair caps off with an unlisted bonus track, which
:: to my ears is really the true end of this disc. Without
:: giving away too much, it is Pet Sounds-esque in its closure.
:: So Adam McIntyre remains a rockstar and a superhero, of a
:: sort, but more importantly he refashions himself as an artist
:: who's not afraid to tell you his story straight. If the last
:: disc was metaphorically for the kid in the front row at the
:: show, this latest rich achievement is for the one (slightly
:: older and a bit wiser) going through similar experiences and
:: listening very closely to what a kindred soul has to offer."
::
:: Buy it if you like it.
::
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::
:: RiP iN PeACe!
::
::
::
::....................................................................