It's Malkmus
The new Malkmus album, his 5th since Pavement called it a day is one of the most accessible records he's produced for some time; it opens with the most recent single 'Tigers' which is an absolute corker; catchy, melodic, upbeat and bouncy with an easy to sing along to chorus and while the rest of the album is perfectly lovely it never quite matches the promise of this Pavement-esque pop song – not sure this was the best place to put that song really because while it hooks you in it's bound to leave you feeling underwhelmed if the rest of the record doesn't carry this through, but anyway, lets talk about the rest of the album.
Some tracks get quite close to recreating the feel of 'Tigers', 'Senator' is a great tune, uncomplicated but warm riffs and Malkmus' usual quirky yet tuneful delivery on lyrics like "I know what the Senator wants is a blow job" makes it one of the most memorable tracks here and the gorgeously titled 'Stick Figures In Love' has a heartbreakingly lovely melody from the guitar, yum. 'Tune Grief' is fun and fuzzy, distortion on the guitars, a rock n roll feel and the faster pace make you bob your head in time.
There are many sweet and meandering tunes, 'Asking Price' is one of the best examples with vocal 'ooh, oohs'. However, a few tunes like 'Long Hard Book' and 'Share The Red' meander a little too much, never taking you anywhere particularly interesting and resulting in your attention wandering intermittently. A solid record for Malkmus & the Jicks (and the last to feature Janet Weiss on drums) with five or six stand out tunes, overall though, (and it's sad to say) even though it's been a long time, the accessible nature and catchy moments here may still leave you longing for the old days again and reaching for "Crooked Rain Crooked Rain".