Steady

It's one thing to make a great album, it's something else entirely to make another great album after that. Few bands have cracked the code of making that happen over and over better than ; nearly 30 years into their career, the band still features the same four guys, and their ability to create magic in the studio hasn't failed them since they found their collective sweet spot on 1996's . 2022's is their 13th album, and once again it delivers a dozen pop songs full of killer hooks, superb harmonies, and a guitar tone ratio of crunch to jangle that never fails them. For anyone who has been following their work, there isn't much in the way of surprises on , but the superlative level of craft and the fresh feel and honest care that goes into the work never fails to impress, even if you've heard them do it before. has been compared to often enough that they must be sick of it by now, but what they truly have in common with the is the ineffable rightness of what happens when they go into the studio. collaborates on a level that's almost freakishly effective, and is the work of four very talented writers and musicians who never get in each other's way and know how to make the whole more than the sum of the parts. From the upbeat charge of "Magical Thinking" and the lean power pop groove of "Dream It All Over Again" to the sweet country accents of "I Dream of Sleep" and the glam rock bark of "Scratch the Surface," there simply isn't any chaff to be found on , attesting to 's stringent quality control standards, including production that is clear and uncluttered, giving the sounds just a bit of bite and keeping the sweetness from overwhelming the listener. As comfortable and confident as this band sounds here, never feels rote -- these guys are in love with rock & roll, and their joy and passion is never far from the surface. If a new band made an album this good and joyously pleasing, they'd be hailed as heroes, and don't let the fact are grizzled veterans keep you from celebrating on a regular basis. ~ Mark Deming