's debut may have been a great album but it sold so poorly, they had to either broaden their audience or, in all likelihood, they'd be dropped from . So, is a consciously different record from its predecessor - less raw and bluesy, blessed with a varied production and catchier songs. That still doesn't make it a pop record, since , particularly in its first incarnation, was simply too idiosyncratic, earthy and strange for that. It is, however, an utterly thrilling, individual blend of pop, rock, blues and country, due in no small part to a stellar set of songs from . If anything, his quirks are all the more apparent here than they were on the debut, since 's production lends each song its own character, plus his pen was getting sharper. truly finds his voice on this record, with each of his contributions sparkling with off-kilter humor, friendly surreal imagery and humanity, and he demonstrates he can authoritatively write anything from full-throttle rock & roll ( ), sweet ballads ( a sublimely reworked ), skewered folk ( ), paranoid rock ( ) and blues ( ) and, yes, even hooky mainstream rock ( which should have been the hit the band intended it to be). That's not to discount the contributions of the other members, particularly and 's which is justifiably one of the band's standards, but the thing that truly stuns on is 's songwriting and how the band brings it to a full, colorful life. Nobody could master the twists and turns within 's songs better than , and both the songwriter and his band are in prime form here. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine