Artist Ryan Adams

Jon Graboff

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Ryan Adams

Three years isn’t an extraordinarily long wait between proper studio albums, but it speaks to Ryan Adams’ impressive prolificacy in the ’00s that this fall’s new Ashes & Fire feels like a long-awaited return after the break from recording and touring he took in the wake of 2008’s Cardinology. (Though even then, Adams didn’t exactly leave fans in the lurch: During his hiatus, he released a metal record called Orion, a shelved album recorded with the Cardinals called III/IV, and two books called Infinity Blues and Hello Sunshine.) A mellow collection of folkie songs with understated country arrangements,Ashes may seem designed to charm those turned off by Adams’ veering, sporadic nature. But mostly it reflects the worldview of an older, more centered man pointed toward a long, reliable career.

Updated 11/21/2011