CD Review

It’s hard to judge Adam Green on musical merit alone. As the former front man behind the Moldy Peaches, Green asked “Who’s Got the Crack” and sang about “Downloading Porn with Dave.” The songs were sloppy and irreverent, but Green and band mate Kimya Dawson built a small, loyal fanbase trekking around the country and playing their absurd and comical anti-folk nursery rhymes. After disbanding the Moldy Peaches a few years back, Green ventured out on his own, producing a pair of solo albums and continuing the pottymouth blabber and whimsical orchestrations his fans came to expect, and now Green returns with his third installment of solo renderings, the equally derisive Gemstones.

Like Frank Zappa before him, Green posses an uncanny ability to sing about taboo subjects while masking their identity in short songs. His instrumentation might not approach Zappa’s, but his twisted humor and lip certainly does. And with Gemstones, Green’s tenor is strong and manic, jumping from simple folk nuance to full out barking. The title track is a perfect example, starting off gentle before self-destructing into a polka waltz. Other tracks like “Crackhouse Blues” and “Chock on a Cock” continue Green’s fixation on drugs and sex without totally going overboard. Well, maybe a bit overboard. But it never comes off as contrived, and Green’s words are sincere and honest, which is part of his allure. Not all of Gemstones is NC-17 either. The merry-go-round sing-along “Emily” has popped up on alternative and college radio and showcases the almost-mainstream in Green’s arsenal. But for the most part Green knows his place, and embraces the lounge singer on crack persona, whipping out a ditty like “Chubby Princess” and then asking “Who’s Your Boyfriend.”