Jacksonville City Nights is full of vivid and poetic storytelling by the lovesick, forlorn, and regret filled Ryan Adams. Adams is more country on this album than he’s been previously, drawing heavily on the influences of the past and single-handedly revitalizing the sounds of various country crooning legends. Painful experiences in a forgotten backcountry are the fuel for his creative fire. It is the anguish of loss that is detailed so expressively in his lyrics that make his music so captivating.

Adams deals with the common themes of country music, but his sound and his articulate and introspective song writing set him apart from the pop-country contingent. He fills his own alt-country niche delivering honky-tonk, rockabilly, traditional, and even yodel-like vocals to the mix, creating a unique sound that is quite far removed from mainstream Nashville.

The album opens with “A Kiss Before I Go” a melancholy piece about a life standing still. It's a numbing revelation of wasted time “You can’t tell the truth in a house of lies / You can’t see tomorrow with yesterday’s eyes / One shot, one beer, and place where nobody cries.” Norah Jones adds her smoky voice on the achingly beautiful and bittersweet “Dear John” as Adams and Jones’ voices melt together in a sonorous synergy, a true delight for the ears that touches the soul. The album finishes with “Don’t Fail Me Now” which is an ominous sounding piece, with Adam’s vocals dragging and tortured. The slow and hesitant vocals mixed with intermittent raucous instrumentals take you on an aural roller coaster ride.

Ryan Adams exhibits lyrical depth and gritty country craftsmanship on this powerful and articulate album, destined to become a true country classic.

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If you think the notion of a 60s-like revolution died with Jimi Hendrix, listen to Story of the Year’s second CD In Wake of Determination. This dynamic sophomore effort follows on the footsteps of their near platinum debut CD Page Avenue which spawned the hit single and video “Until the Day I Die.” On their new CD, the group continues their fascination with death while at the same time urging their listeners to revolt.

“We will never step down / Your time is now” Marsala wails in “Our Time is Now.” In “Wake up the Voiceless,” the message is clear. “Wake up the voiceless, wake up the revolution,” he declares.

Frontman Dan Marsala displays an anger and voice similar to Johnny Rotten in such songs as “Is This My Fate?” This song reflects upon the consequences if we don’t act now. “When will you learn, this is our fall,” Marsala screams.

Story of the Year demonstrate their versatility in such songs as “A Silent Murder” and “Sleep.” Both songs are more melodic and a departure from the thrashing metal sound of “We Don’t Care Anymore,” the CD’s single. These two songs both employ the metaphor of empty roads as life’s journey till death. “The streets call our names,” Dan Marsala sings in “Sleep.” “We are heading down a long empty road / We pass lost souls / blinded by the cold,” Marsala reflects in the song “A Silent Murder.”

All in all this CD will jolt you out of your complacency, and is sure to be on the playlist of today's most angst-ridden teens.

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