There are two above-average tunes (She's A Jar, Via Chicago), a bunch of re-hashed mediocrity (ELT, How to Fight Loneliness) and some rather syrupy and/or pointless clunkers(Shot In the Arm, Summerteeth YUK!, I'm Always in Love, In a Future Age). The sound is brittle and amateurishly over-produced. The band plays without any soul whatsoever and the arrangements are gimmicky and distractful (a common recording trick when you're dealing with a poorly written song in the first place). Some lyrics are intelligent and beautiful ("And freeze to spread skeleton wings/I passed through before I knew you"), while others are trite and dopey ("You followed me down/the neck to D"). In short, there are far too many run-of-the-mill songs on this CD for it to merit such unquestionable, "album-of-the-year" praise. Look before you leap and borrow a friend's copy before you buy.