Clash Music

Sounding more like an ageing Las Vegas crooner than a cult indie hero, Adam Green’s latest album ‘Jacket Full Of Danger’ sees the singer sink further into psychedelic pop and confirms his ability as an original and talented song writer. When asked if his Vegas style was intentional, Green is surprisingly defensive: “I don’t know, I like Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett but Vegas is where they get old. I like them because they are from New York and that’s where I’m from.” Nobody is suggesting Green is at the end of his career. The 24-year-old has accomplished a lot since he started writing songs at the age of twelve. Once a member of New York’s indie cult heroes Moldy Peaches, Green left to pursue a solo career and ‘Jacket Full Of Danger’ is his third lone release.

Solo artists aren’t exactly in short supply with the likes of James Blunt, Daniel Powter and Jack Johnson currently flooding the market. “I don’t really consider them to be solo artists, I consider them to be more like corporations. They’re not really very artistic. I try to write songs in the most artful way and I try to make them entertaining as well. I want to make the most exciting music I can.” ‘Jacket Full Of Danger’ is very eclectic as a result. It wanders from Jim Morrison style psychedelic wailing to comical swing crooning and jazz like the single ‘Nat King Cole’, which evokes a feeling of old style New York clubs and decadent late nights.

Although Green himself is rooted in the alternative indie scene, some of his tunes verge on pure accessible pop. “I think that was the whole thing the whole time. There’s always people in the mainstream coming from a counter-cultural place. Like Nirvana or even Notorious BIG. They’re not coming from a popular place but they became very popular. And that’s kind of the idea.” Green says he grew up listening not to indie music particularly but to psychedelic music by artists like The Incredible String Band but was also influenced by kraut rock and punk rock bands like Minor Threat, Bad Dreams and The Minute Men. These influences have all contributed to his current sound. “I think growing up I wasn’t into the indie scene. I just listened to it because it was there. I wasn’t very impressed with it. I wanted it to be something different. I’m not into boring music and it’s really prevalent, I see it all the time.”

For someone so indifferent to the indie scene, it is ironic that most of his fans are indie kids, including The Strokes who had Green supporting them on tour. “I don’t really know where I come from. I don’t feel part of the indie scene, even with Moldy Peaches. I guess I just come from an ‘Adam’ place musically. I’m sort of in-between.” It’s not a bad place to be.
Especially if it means the kind of success the other in-betweeners or crossover artists Green cites as his main inspiration. “A lot of my favourite music is Motown. It’s concise, it’s melodic, and it’s composed well. The singing is great and the emotion is there. And it’s groovy as hell.” He doesn’t confine his music tastes to older artists however. Continuing his infatuation with pop, Green lists the Sugababes among his current favourites along with 50 Cent. “His album ‘Window Shopping’ has got a narcotic feel and I’ve always been attracted to narcotics.”

Green’s attraction to narcotics can be found on his previous albums as well as ‘JfoD’ with songs such as ‘Crackhouse Blues’ and now ‘Drugs’. Although Green has had some success with these albums, it’s not been without criticism. His last release was met with heavy criticism especially when it came to the drug songs and he was accused of being deliberately vulgar and pretentious.
“It pisses me off when people critique my records and it’s like you would have no idea how to do this. My last record got really bad reviews in the UK, but it’s taken me twelve years of practising songwriting to get me here.”
This could be the source of Green’s defensive reaction to Las Vegas earlier on; there is an inescapable insecurity in his tone about how the new album will be received. If there was any doubt, he goes on to say that his label in the US (Rough Trade) have folded.

When Green took ‘Jacket Full Of Danger’ round to other labels, it didn’t even occur to him that he would have problems getting his album put out in the States. “I just thought it was beyond the accomplishment that you needed to have to be put on a record label. I didn’t even worry about it when I found out Rough Trade had folded. This is the record of my career and I’ve sold hundreds of thousands of records and I’m only 24 years old. I thought for sure I would get a deal. It’s not like I’m an old guy or something, singing songs at the end of his career. But to them I’m like a psycho or the devil for not wanting to make corporate rock.”

Green resolved to put the record out himself in the States, which must leave a person bitter when you see MOR, low risk corporate rockers getting all the money and accolades. “I go through periods where I feel like I don’t get much respect for my ability, you know what I mean? It’s like compared to the Kaiser Chiefs, I’m like Bob fucking Dylan or something.” It’s difficult to disagree when you think about the effort Green has put into ‘JfoD’ with its full string bands and compositions and the sheer self belief that only solo artists seem to possess. It is the only way to get through the kind of adversity he has faced from the music industry. But why carry on battling?
“I don’t know. I hear songs in my head and the important thing is to get them down on tape. It’s not my choice what occurs to me. You don’t get a lot of choices in the world; you just get what occurs to you. And what occurs to me is to make records. It’s as plain as anything else that’s happening, like trees or nature.”

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