The New Mexico/Oregon band are probably still living down their Natalie Portman plug of approval in the film Garden State. But in a way that - and fine second offering 2004's Chutes Too Narrow - has set this one up asa frontrunner in 2007's most-anticipated album race.
It is the great leap forward too, expanding on the band's indie palette while still jangling with gorgeous wistful pop melodies as it does on Australia and Turn on Me.
It's got bells, whistles, vibes, strings, synths, a Smiths fixation (Sealegs), a Jesus & Mary Chain fuzz attack (Phantom Limb, Pam Berry), psychedelic urges (Black Wave), and finishes off with a decidedly Finn-like ballad (Girl Sailor).
Tied to frontman James Mercer's compellingly scatterbrained lyrics, which earn the "Dylanesque" compliment care of an ability to keep coming back to confuse in strange and fascinating new ways on every play, this soon emerges as a sweetly confounding classic.
Verdict: American indie outsiders deliver best yet. Natalie will be pleased
