"Fun" isn't a word normally associated with , a singer who has specialized in earnest sincerity ever since 's "Jeremy" blanketed MTV and modern rock radio in 1992. His guileless gravity served as 's lodestar in the ensuing decades, steering the band toward such weighty statements as , a searing ecological warning the group delivered at the eve of their 30th anniversary. , the solo album released two years later -- it's his second, following the subdued by about 11 years -- feels as vigorous as even as it sounds nothing at all like it. peppers with a few righteous rockers that are precisely in 's wheelhouse -- "Power of Right" helps kick off the record in a high gear -- but he spends most of the album playing the kind of vibrant, colorful rock consciously avoids. Often, it seems as if is intent on reconnecting with the kind of rock that filled the airwaves in the days prior to grunge. "Invincible" is a stirring, openhearted anthem that conjures the ghost of prime , "The Dark" propels forward on an insistent widescreen rhythm reminiscent of late-'80s college rock, and "Fallout Today" is buoyed by thick layers of acoustic guitar. also invites a number of classic rockers to play on songs with explicit connections to their own past. "Mrs. Mills" is an unexpected bit of stately esque pop anchored by on drums, "Long Way" is a de facto homage to -era complete with on keyboards, while "Picture" is a rollicking duet with , who also contributes barrelhouse piano. knows enough to throw a curveball on occasion, as when he has race to keep pace on "Try," a rocker invigorated by 's harp. On a strictly musical basis, is the most varied project has ever released, and it's also his lightest album: there's a palpable joy to his free experiments here that's infectious, even fun. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine