Launch #21

Counting Crows
Across A Wire: Live In New York
(DGC)
Rating: 4 out of 7
By Neal Weiss

Admittedly a stop-gap for fans who will likely have to wait some time for another Counting Crows studio effort, Across A Wire: Live In New York is a 2-CD collection that features both an unplugged set (from the VH1 "Storytellers" program) and one that is full-throttle (from "MTV Live From The 10 Spot"). Featuring 21 songs, four of which are performed in both settings, Across A Wire is intriguing in that it documents this rootsy, quasi-'70s band as it faces the challenge of gigs in both the intimate and arena-like settings.

What is revealed is both good and bad. The good is exemplified in the versatility of frontman Adam Duritz's oft-overlooked bandmates. On the set from "Storytellers" they entertain with acoustics, accordions, banjos, and lots of restraint, reworking songs like "Rain King" and "Mr. Jones" with great success. On the disc culled from "Live From The 10 Spot" they rock out with a fury entirely absent from August And Everything After and far beyond that of their 1996 follow-up, Recovering The Satellites. "Angels Of The Silences, " one of the cornerstone tunes for the latter, holds the rare honor of outshining just about everything else on Across A Wire. . . twice. Breezy and warm the first time and blistering the second, this is the sign of a pretty great song.

The bad is exemplified in the fact that the Crows lack enough pretty great songs to sustain such an effort. Frequently they get bogged down in rambling tunes that weigh too heavy on words and not enough on hooks, a flaw only exacerbated by unwieldy live performances such as these. Duritz's own verbose, cathartic singing style is occasionally heartrending, but more often makes you want to hurl an old sneaker at him, as if he's a cat in heat outside your back window. As a result, Across A Wire might be a tough sell for those not already seduced by the spell of Counting Crows.