When a band reappears after a long time away and releases new music, the first question to cross most people's mind is something like this -- are they as good as they used to be? In the case of , the answer is complicated. The band imploded after two less-than-inspiring albums in the late '90s left them reeling. With that in mind, is definitely better than both 1997's melody-free and 1998's confused . It's much closer to the bright and uncomplicated joys of , focusing on breezy guitar pop with the occasional cloudy moment, all delivered with a light touch. Partially, this is down to another factor that complicates the arrival of the album. The trio of vocalist/guitarist , bassist , and drummer failed to extend an invitation to the group's chief songwriter and sonic architect . On paper that's akin to re-forming without , but in practice -- despite the slightly off-putting feelings it might engender -- it actually works pretty well. The remaining threesome managed to capture the original spirit of the band quite well, adding just enough oddball touches in the arrangements to keep things interesting while delivering a batch of songs that have all the hooks, energy, and breathless joy of the vintage at their best. A track like "I Say a Lot of Things" manages to sound like a 101 lecture, folding in bobbling percussion, parping trumpets, a dub break, and a chorus made to sing in the morning shower. Elsewhere, they add strings, lots of sunny backing vocals, subtle keyboards, and barely any overloaded guitars. A couple songs have surprises, like the sweeping synths and -style bass on "You and Me" or the unabashed romanticism of the gently dubby ballad "Here She Comes Again." It's a fine production job overall, sounding rich and live even though it was recorded remotely in bits and pieces. Top it off with 's agelessly squeaky-clean vocals, and the album comes across like an alternate world follow-up to Definitely with a bit of added life experience that can be heard in the more thoughtful songs, such as "A Full Syringe and Memories of You" or the string-heavy, searching "Call Your Name," which gives the second half of the album -- where most of these songs are located -- a slightly melancholy feel. Whether the tracks are smile-inducing or a little sad, they are all big, bright, and joyful, and the group sound like they are having a blast delivering satisfying pop kicks just like in the olden days. It's easy to wish all four members had been able to work together again, but having the band back in any form and operating at such a high level is a dream come true for all fanatics, and the record should be a nice discovery for younger fans looking for some classic OG dream pop. ~ Tim Sendra