On its fifth full-length album, PUZZLES LIKE YOU, Mojave 3 extends its stay in the expansive, wide-screen territory of its predecessor, SPOON AND RAFTER. While the British group's alt-country leanings are still evident (see the sleepy, pastoral "Most Days"), singer-songwriter Neil Halstead and company are also intent on crafting lush indie-pop tunes, most notably the chiming single "Breaking the Ice," a gloriously upbeat song that highlights Halstead's gentle vocal harmonies with bassist Rachel Goswell. And, on "Big Star Baby," Mojave 3 masterfully melds a twangy pedal-steel lilt with a highly melodic sensibility, while toasting the the revered power-pop act Big Star. For fans that thought that the former Slowdivers had hit a peak with SPOON AND RAFTER, this assured and dynamic outing reveals that Mojave 3 is still ascending to new and greater heights.
2006 and fifth album for 4AD for this band featuring Neil and Rachel from Slowdive. Puzzles Like You sees the band moving forward in an unexpected direction; these songs are more immediate and poppy than anything they recorded before and the album is infectious and downright fun. Features the single 'Breaking The Ice'. 2006
Recording information: The Farm2.
Personnel: Neil Halstead (vocals, guitar); Rachel Goswell (vocals, bass guitar); Ian McCutcheon (vocals, drums, percussion); Melvin Duffy (banjo); Pritpal Soor, Nick Zala (strings); Alan Forrester (piano).
Audio Mixer: Victor Van Vugt.
Spin (p.84) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[It bears] the mark of Big Star, the Memphis power-pop institution whose twangy jangle-rock lessons Halstead appears to have internalized."
CMJ (p.5) - "[T]he album consists mostly of melodic, country-tinged indie rock."
No Depression (p.111) - "Stuffed with bubblegum choruses, faster time signatures, and several of the most unapologetically catchy, pure pop tracks they've ever committed to tape."
Mojave 3 - Puzzles Like You Songs
| 1 | Truck Driving Man | | | |
| 2 | Puzzles Like You | | | |
| 3 | Breaking the Ice See All 2 | | | |
| 4 | Running With Your Eyes Closed | | | |
| 5 | Most Days | | | |
| 6 | Big Star Baby | | | |
| 7 | Ghostship Waiting | | | |
| 8 | Kill the Lights | | | |
| 9 | You Said It Before | | | |
| 10 | To Hold Your Tiny Toes | | | |
| 11 | Just a Boy | | | |
| 12 | Mutineer | | | |
Puzzles Like You Music Review
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