Fort Apache producers Sean Slade and Paul Kolderie keep those churning guitars right up front on the new disc. And Madan loosens up a bit, borrowing a few engaging melodramatic tricks and ticks from Morrissey. (Check out the way she tacks that extra maudlin "ah anyway" onto the end of the chorus of "Nobody like You.") Johansson and Smith eschew solo heroics in favor of winsome Johnny Marr-style comping, like the buoyant arpeggios on "King of the Kerb" and the slicing rhythmic jabs in "Pantyhose and Roses." Echoing the Smiths positions On as something more than new-wave nostalgia: it places Echobelly as worthy heirs to a fine British pop tradition.

- Matt Ashare