CREEM ONLINE: Wayne Kramer

Wayne Kramer
Adult World
2002 MuscleTone

Youth brings with it an intensity of feeling, which lends itself to all sorts of behavior that inspires good rock and roll. Hot love, broken hearts, the search for kicks – even boredom seems purposeful.

That vein has yielded much musical gold, and will continue to do so forever and ever amen. The question for a rocker is what to do when youth passes.

Looking at some of ex-MC5 guitarist Wayne Kramer's contemporaries, it seems like there are a few common paths: leaving the business, writing terrible new music, or doing some sort of greatest-hits nostalgia trip. For example, when was the last time any of us actually listened to a new Rolling Stones album? Who cares? They'll sell out stadiums this fall, but there's not a band around that's less relevant.

So when Wayne Kramer calls his newest studio album "Adult World" and labels it on the back "new music for grown-ups," it seems like we're being set up for a snooze-o-rama. Of course, Kramer isn't the average rock animal. The remarkable thing isn't that Kramer has made it through the carnage. What's remarkable is that he made it through with his brain intact (see Keith or Ozzy for examples of the alternative). He comes across as someone who's still figuring it all out, but that he's maybe a little farther along than he was before. And the good news is he hasn't succumbed to artistic stasis yet. Instead he has found an appropriate middle path - one that allows him to continue playing high-energy rock with dignity.

Kramer released a flurry of albums on Epitaph in the 1990s, beginning with 1995's "The Hard Stuff" and culminating with 1997's "Citizen Wayne." On each of those albums, he dealt with the great topics of his life (the MC5, Johnny Thunders, the 1968 Democratic convention, heroin, prison, absent father, etc.). It seemed that writing about those things was part of his own therapy, a way of coming to terms with a life that had seen some pain.

"Doing the work," he wrote on Citizen Wayne, "It saved me, really."

What made those albums interesting was that they were history lessons, not a nostalgia trip. But now, after a 5-year break between solo albums, Kramer makes a transition from history to anthropology. On "Adult World," he moves away from obviously biographical songs. Instead he plays the role of storyteller, spinning cautionary tales of desperation and hope, of love and loss. In true lotus-flower-growing-in-filthy-water fashion, Kramer has crafted a series of beautiful songs filled with violence and depravity.

"Adult World" finds Kramer as the captain of his own ship in many ways. It was released on his own MuscleTone Records label, and much of it was produced on a Mac using Pro Tools. This allowed Kramer to weave contemporary tones like drum machines with vintage elements like reverb-drenched vocals in a way that sounds current without sounding like he's trying to hang with the youngsters.

Kramer's latter-day specialty is writing broad, cinematic songs with vivid and dark imagery. He plumbs territory somewhere between Tom Waits and Neil Young, and this time out he goes for atmosphere more than punch. The highlight of "Adult World" is a noir homage to famed Chicago novelist Nelson Algren. Kramer is backed with cool tension by cello, bass sax and drums, courtesy of X-Mars-X.

Sweden's Hellacopters make a special guest appearance on the song "Talkin' Outta School," giving Kramer a chance to prove that he can still kick 'em out.

"Adult World" isn't as instantly engaging as some of Kramer's previous solo albums. But it's an interesting work, and its impact is sure to grow with time.