Is Ryan Adams losing the run of himself? After the triumph of his first two albums, Rock'n'Roll is a huge disappointment, a lumbering collection of vacuous rock songs that's almost completely without charm. It comes across as nothing so much as a feverish dash toward the mainstream, leaving his folk and country-rock origins in the dust. Which would be fine, except that Adams can't make up his mind who he wants to be - his vocals are carbon-copies of Bono, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen in turn, each imitation more cringe-worthy than the next. And while his knack for memorable hooks and killer one-liners remain intact (eg "I am in the twilight of my youth - Not that I'm going to remember"), he seems to be too busy showing off to reveal anything of his own personality. With his goonish posturing and inflated ego, Adams is beginning to come across as an American version of Robbie Williams. And for a man of his talent, that's a tragedy.
