Many fans of southern California alt-rockers
Ozma were disappointed by the band's last album, considering
Spending Time on the Borderline a weak-willed attempt to break into the new wave revival. Coming nearly four years and one breakup and re-formation later,
Pasadena reverts to the straightforward indie pop of
Ozma's earlier material; it even features a re-recording of one of the previous album's better songs, "Eponine," in apparent atonement. These 11 songs are as crisp and bouncy as the best material on
Rock and Roll Part Three, with a newfound lyrical maturity and a more wide-screen sound that better incorporates the synthesizer parts that started to overwhelm the rest of the band on
Spending Time on the Borderline. (See "Incarnation Blues.") The album's true highlight is the simply outstanding "Heartache Vs. Heartbreak," a dramatic,
Electric Light Orchestra-influenced duet between lead singer
Daniel Brummel and guest star
Rachel Haden that sounds like a great lost
New Pornographers single; if she'll have them,
Ozma should consider asking
Haden to join the band permanently. Surprisingly considering the indifference towards their last album,
Ozma have returned to active duty with perhaps the strongest work of their careers.