Heartbreaker (Ryan Adams Album) - Critical Reception

Critical Reception

The album was considered to be a fresh start for Ryan Adams after the demise of his previous band Whiskeytown. Allmusic's Mark Derning wrote that the album "is loose, open, and heartfelt in a way Whiskeytown's admittedly fine albums never were, and makes as strong a case for Adams' gifts as anything his band ever released", concluding that "the strength of the material and the performances suggest Adams is finally gaining some much-needed maturity, and his music is all the better for it." A.V. Club's Keith Phipps wrote: "Adams has recorded an intimate, largely quiet record that indisputably establishes his identity as an independent singer-songwriter". Pitchfork Media's Steven Byrd called it "an album of astonishing musical proficiency, complete honesty and severe beauty.". Rolling Stone's Anthony Decurtis was less enthusiastic, stating that "Adams' songs too often fail to rise above their plain-spoken details to take on the symbolic power he yearns for".