Giant Steps

Titling an album after 's masterpiece may well seem the height of pretension, but heck, it never stopped the from a similar move vis-a-vis the . As it is, the title is perfectly justified -- guitarist/songwriter , a aficionado among many other things, here finally leads his band from the promising to the truly inspired. With the inventive, groundbreaking EP as a touchstone (the title track is included here in an unfortunately abbreviated form), the self-produce themselves to new heights. The genius of the definitely lies in their ability to adapt many a different touch and make it their own, taking what are often straightforward, hooky pop songs and turning them into something more, an ability shows in spades. The old fuzz blast is here, but less beholden to the likes of , instead drawing on 's wide-ranging tastes ( , psych-pop, / -inspired arrangements) to reach different, individual conclusions. From the near free-noise wash of to the soaring pop blast of a poignant, nostalgiac lyric backed by a thrilling overall performance, the band does little wrong. and effectively incorporate dub/reggae rhythms, as itself showed they could do, blending in loping, funky skank to and the fantastic 's guitar work is much more distinctly his own throughout the album, with often volcanic, inspired soloing adding a huge, echoed sound to many of the songs. A number of guest performers help, notably on brass; his trumpet and flugelhorn parts and flourishes add jazzy touches throughout, at times reminiscent of ' work on . ~ Ned Raggett