Singing along, scratchily

Matthew Ryan's second album blends grit, greatness

Matthew Ryan
East Autumn Grin
(A&M Records)

By David John Farinella
Special to CNN Interactive

(CNN) - In this Pentium chip, word-processed and whiz-bang-boom world of music, Matthew Ryan is a vintage Royal typewriter. He offers the basics in bold, unmistakable script.

Where other artists busy themselves with silly love songs and finding the right pop sound, Ryan taps into the gritty real world. He emerges with songs built around salt-of-the-earth characters, sung against direct musical arrangements.

AUDIO "3RD Of October" 352K WAV sound "Me And My Lover" 416K WAV sound "The World Is On Fire" 464K WAV sound

"East Autumn Grin" picks up right where Ryan's debut, "Mayday," left off three years ago. Classic influences such as Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Joe Ely shine through. So do more contemporary artists like Joe Henry and Adam Duritz. Like those artists, Ryan has made his musical mark with insightful lyrics, although the words in this album aren't as sharp or telling as those on "Mayday."

"3rd of October," "Heartache Weather," "Sadlylove" and "I Must Love Leaving" highlight the album's uptempo numbers. Ryan's voice folds gruffly into musical arrangements that are quintessentially American: strumming acoustic guitars, haunted electric leads, melodic bass playing and steady drumming.

To his credit, the songwriter and his producer, Trina Shoemaker, only dabble in the occasional eccentric flash.

A dissonant rendition of "When The Saints Come Marching In" opens "Me and My Lover," and a one-off trumpet line, courtesy of Soul Asylum's Dave Pirner, plays through "Ballad of a Limping Man." Musically, those bits of sonic wallpaper are the only alterations Ryan has made to his sound since "Mayday."

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Other album guests include Johnette Napolitano, who offered background vocals on "Sunk" and "The World Is on Fire"; Josh Rouse, who sang backgrounds on "I Hear a Symphony"; and Ryan's first producer, David Ricketts, who added guitar, piano and keyboard along the way.

Ryan becomes truly distinctive during slower songs that deal with broken hearts and battered dreams. While he doesn't have the vocal chops of a Joe Henry or Michael Penn, Ryan's blue-collar singing approach is appropriate for some of his songs' attitude and intimacy. "Time and Time Only" is perhaps one of the most profound songs on the album, a song that combines heart-wrenching lyrics with a stark vocal approach.

Will Matthew Ryan be one of those artists high-schoolers rave about on the first day of classes this fall? Doubtful; not all of his songs come with dance moves.

But as performers like Dylan, Petty and Mellencamp drift -- loudly -- into maturity, they leave the changing tradition of American rock music to songwriters like Ryan.

It might be small clubs and radio-free work for Ryan for a bit longer, but his time is coming. Discerning music fans will be the luckier for it when that moment arrives.