Now that Jeff Barry has left--he played guitar and was half the band on the Palms EP and 1993's Year after Year--it's pretty much Jeff Martin's own private Idaho. (I couldn't resist.) The harrowing and unsteady vocals are backed with signature de-tuned guitars that fans of Dinosaur Jr. will find to their liking. Personally I like D. Jr's instrumentals, but have to run for the volume when J Mascus starts singing. Luckily, the vocals here are often more accessible. Several songs rate special mention, such as the intense "Crawling Out", and my favorite, "Still", with its wandering over modulated guitar solo that plays nicely against a chimey acoustic rhythm as the song intensifies to its noisy conclusion.

--Gary Littleton

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