The Sandspur

Issue date: 2/28/08 Section: Arts & Entertainment

Madeline Adams is a lot of things. She's a woman, a college student, a bartender, a musician, a sister, a daughter, and a friend. When I interviewed Madeline and asked her a series of uneasy questions, you could see that she truly is a witty and well-rounded individual.

Madeline's career as a musician began at an early age; she was only fifteen years old when she started playing her simple yet engaging songs around the Athens, Georgia area.

Her album The Slow Bang, which was released on Orange Twin in 2007, personifies her Do It Yourself scene, having been recorded in a house with a chorus of crickets on backing vocals. For some artists, the D.I.Y. scene can be a blessing and a burden. Madeline finds it to be a blessing.

She describes her experience as, "…just a bunch of people getting together and having fun. The D.I.Y. scene has been nothing but kind to me and I'm grateful for it." So far she's come out unscathed by the high demands of the scene which created her. However, with an upcoming showcase at SXSW in Texas and a new album due out soon, fame might find her even if she's not looking to find it.

The lines between indie and major label have been blurred by a compilation called "Now That's What I Call Indie" and the new Charlotte Russe wardrobe line, which replaced club-hopping Jaeger-bomber attire with indie dresses and tights. With this blurred line it becomes increasingly difficult to see small-town/small-label heroes like Madeline Adams as "normal" people, but she's just like you or me.

Madeline has a job, she's a student, and is trying to juggle those two activities while simultaneously recording an album with her band Nana Grizol. Madeline describes her success in wearing three hats by saying she's "not [handling] very well."

However, she seems to be handling her popularity just fine. Even in the midst of growing fame she remains honest and real.

When I asked her about whether she is recognized at restaurants, she says "only one time in Austin, Texas, but I recognized them too," adding "the time in Austin didn't feel weird or anything."

She continues her modesty by saying, "sometimes my parents get asked if they're my parents, but that's just because I grew up here and I've been playing music in Athens for like, eight years. I think they get a kick out of that."

Madeline spends part of her year in college and the other part on the road. Since touring is such a major part of a musician's being, it seemed fitting to ask her opinion of that hectic lifestyle. Madeline described touring as "a weird way to live… great, but weird."

Continued...

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