It's hard to believe that the joyous screams of opener 'And the Hazy Sea...' kick off an album without a single chorus, but then first impressions with Cymbals Eat Guitars are never a great idea. It's true that the band wear their influences on their sleeves- initially sounding like a rejuvenated incarnation of Pavement, they gradually reveal a mesh of influences ranging from Wilco to Built to Spill and from Sleater-Kinney to New Jersey power pop outfit The Wrens. Yet there's an underlying complexity to their music which isn't immediately apparent when you first find yourself humming along to the buoyant, Malkmus-esque intro to 'Wind Phoenix'. The band construct verses so familiar and engaging that they could easily rely on simple pop structures, but they'd rather rip their ideas apart by changing the tempo or the mood, by throwing in an organ solo or letting the bass guitar take the lead.

The lyrics jump out from all angles - each line seems to bear so much resonance yet when arranged around the song structures, the meaning becomes far more difficult to decipher. It's this approach to songwriting that makes lines like "Without use of a pole, she swings / Her thighs clamped round infinity" really strike a chord when you're able to pick them out. Factor in that the instrumental crescendos rarely match up with the emotional meanderings of the lyrics and you have a collection of songs that will continue to surprise and beg repeated listens. On paper, even the most ecstatic parts of the album come across like the bleakest prose on roadtripping across America - it's only when you're in the middle of screaming along to a song like 'Indiana' that you realise just how much anguish is present on this album.

In a world where subtlety is so often replaced with obtrusive and insubstantial sentiment, you'll welcome the feeling of adolescent nostalgia that washes over you with every hum of guitar feedback and murmur of the warm, crackling Wurlitzer organ. This is far from the best we'll see of Cymbals Eat Guitars, but their energy makes this album so much more than just an homage to the bands they seem so eager to pay tribute to.

Leah Pritchard