June 28 - Ryan Adams is in his own little world. It’s this world of genius and unpredictable behavior on the stage that makes you lose your own sense of pride. God forbid that you piss him off; everyone is pulling their best audience etiquette, hoping for smidgen of appreciation from Adams. For a guy who’s famous for walking off stage because of less than par crowds, his music is endearing as hell. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals' sold-out performance at the Fillmore at the TLA was spirited, but left a crowd that was speechless, and booing.

Ten minutes before the band took the stage, to everyone’s surprise, a roadie set Adams’ guitar on the stage. This was surprising because Adams had torn a ligament in his hand while skateboarding, and wasn’t supposed to play a guitar for a good portion of the tour, if at all.

Yet, at 9:24 he and the band took the stage, starting off with “A Kiss Before I Go.” Adams showed absolutely no rust on the guitar, playing with appropriately swaying body language while perched on a stool. Although his stolid, casual expression between songs and dark sunglasses would tell you otherwise, even he admitted “its so f—cking exciting to be playing guitar again.” Everyone in the audience agreed.

Adams was simply kicking out the jams again, and The Cardinals were in full swing. For anyone who’s never seen Adams live, it should be noted that his voice is absolutely on point in any style of song. With The Cardinals, it was mostly of the laid back soul variety, with the majority coming from his albums with the band - Jacksonville City Nights, Cold Roses, Easy Tiger - and similarly steady tracks.

Adams and The Cardinals really hit a nice stride through their closing numbers - “Two,” “Easy Plateau,” “Blue Hotel,” and “I See Monsters.” The band walked off stage at 10:44, leaving everyone smiling and cheering. A fan threw a rose onto the stage. What an enjoyable show, I thought. Now for the encore.

But it wasn't meant to be. To everyone’s dismay, the dreaded house music and lights came on. Yes, “Rock the Casbah,” is a nice song to hear after a show, but it was anything but what we wanted to hear at that moment.

It was over. Cries of “Come Pick Me Up,” went unanswered, and everyone stood around in disbelief for about ten minutes until being asked by TLA security to leave. Part of me thought maybe it was Adams’ thematic plan to suddenly jump back on stage, arms out, and shout, “Just kidding!” But that was it. Maybe his wrist was starting to tire, or maybe it was just Ryan Adams being Ryan Adams again, but only he and his band know for sure.

The boo-birds came out for a good 30 seconds. Maybe they thought their $38 bought them an encore. Disgruntled fans filed out into the rain that awaited them outside, and the memory of a very solid performance had a bitter aftertaste.

Check out the set list after the cut.

1. A Kiss Before I Go
2. What Sin Replaces Love
3. Off Broadway
4. Cold Roses
5. Please Do Not Let Me Go
6. Dear Chicago
7. Bartering Lines
8. Peaceful Valley
9. Beautiful Sorta
10. Oh My God, Whatever, Etc.
11. Magnolia Mountain
12. Two
13.Easy Plateau
14. Blue Hotel
15. I See Monsters

Image taken by writer