Grrr...

For its third proper album, Bishop Allen continued to perfect their amalgam of riff-centered, wittily lyrical, Pavement-influenced college rock and indie-pop sweetness. On "South China Moon," band principals Justin Rice and Christian Rudder nearly capture an ideal middle space that would sound at home on a Joe Jackson record, except for the twinkling atmosphere that occasionally breaks in between choruses. And when the appealing topsoil of meaty power chords erodes into semi-acoustics on cuts like "Oklahoma," the pair's knack for wordplay and catchy phrasing fills in GRRR.'s quirkier moments with an almost Kinks-worthy charm.