hold as close to their heart as, say, -- perhaps even more, as (whose very initials are the same as the ') don't attempt synthesis or reimagination, they merely seek continuance, acting as though nothing happened between in 1993 and in 2009. Try as they may, the bandmembers cannot deny the passage of time, or their geography, for are creatures of their time and place, just as their idols were. At their core, were Midwestern misfits, something that was evident in their very appearance and sound, something that could be heard in 's thundering backbeat, the skyscraping guitars of and , and, especially, 's outcast wail, producing a sound that found beauty in ugliness and vice-versa. In stark contrast, are nothing but pretty, shimmering sweetly on the surface, a sound suited for Los Angeles. avoid unpleasantness to such a great extent on that they rarely shift tempos or dynamics. They merely wallow in washes of sound, deriving equally from guitars and whispered vocals, never pushing forward, never achieving any sense of momentum, just glimmering in the sunlight. It's pleasant enough, particularly when the breathy vocals fade away to leave behind cascades of guitars, but even at its best, it's nothing more than an approximation of at their peak, with all the interesting parts stripped away. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine