Well if the review below doesn’t sum up this album, I don’t know what could, as this really is the sound of a cool glass of lemonade and the sizzling southern pavement on a hot yet beautiful clear day in the middle of summer, waiting for the fun and fireworks to begin once the sun begins to set. Ive always been a fan of these guys, especially when they were ‘dream-poppers’ Slowdive, but their new country sound had a lack of pretentiousness that all the other ‘alt-country’ bands had, and to me this was a very good thing. This may also explain why they were not quite embraced by that scene, almost equal to the lack of embrace they received in the shoegaze scene (aka ‘the scene that celebrates itself’) of the early 90’s when they were Slowdive. Why? Who knows. Who cares really, cause the music speaks for itself. Their first album was very quiet, like an acoustic Mazzy Star, but oh so beautiful. Then ‘Out of Tune’ came out and they took on a mid-tempo atmospheric country rock sound, with a little bit of a lazy day at the beach vibe. Then they lost it for me for a few albums (sans ‘Billy Oddity’ off the ‘Spoon & Rafter’ album), despite the always strong songwriting of Neil Halstead. But now ‘Puzzles Like You’ comes out this year, and it blows me away. It’s what I always hoped they would put out, and knew they should have out out. The songs are more upbeat, very catchy, and with a crystal clear production, the songs really just jump off the record. All the while keeping their country sound (and those beautiful slide guitars), but making it their own. Don’t shy away from the country tag, cause its not country per say, but you will know when you hear it. A perfect idea of what it would sound like if a britpop band with a conscience made a ‘country’ record. Oh wait, thats what this is.

“Mojave 3’s new material isn’t an abandonment of any strengths; it’s an embrace of the simple pleasures of the classic ’60s garage-pop style of songwriting — a style that Neil Halstead has certainly flirted with and referenced throughout the years. It’s a gift that 4AD chose to release Puzzles Like You during the advent of summer. It’s a twisting-by-the-pool record. It’s a driving-with-the-top-down record. Hot like the pavement. Cool like lemonade. It’s midday instead of sunset. If this is not the dynamic you expect from Mojave 3, prepare to be pleasantly surprised.” – Prefix Mag