mewithoutYou have lived an anomalous existence in the modern climate of indie rock and yet, through relentless touring, they have become surprisingly quite well-known. Not surprisingly because their music is bad however; but surprisingly because they are one of the few bands out there with a sound that is often purposefully uninviting and discordant in a time where everything has begun to sound ultra-glossy. With their latest effort "Catch For Us The Foxes", the band continue down their strident path, albeit this time with a lot more melody in place.

To the unfamiliar, mewithoutYou's sound may come off as rather unique. But with the groups shift in aesthetic and dynamics having mellowed considerably on this release, one could almost mistake the album for the Talking Heads being reincarnated as an indie rock band. With a spirit that recalls the tenacity of 80's punk and an instrumental portion that eloquently meanders in arty territory ala At The Drive-In on tranquilizers, the music is both at odds and cogent in the same. The discombobulated vocals, which come off like a maniacal spoken word performance 90% of the time, do take some getting used to. But with a few well placed notes and the occasional attempt at singing, it all fits together, though rather precariously at best.

Truthfully the band have now ground down a lot of the rough edges that made their last effort "[A-->B] Life" so invigorating. But by not cleaning up the mess made from doing so, and instead choosing to plow through it with a determined melodic slant, they've also matured admirably and retained a fairly edgy sound. Still, with some preachy lyrical content and a generally unchecked style of song-writing, multiple snags are soon encountered. The fact that they consistently lack any vocal melodies to help compound the rather spacey organic approach now taken by the instruments only furthers this. While this contrast is enjoyable at first, it can also become tiresome just as quickly. As unfortunate it is, the restrained backing performance that is now in place generally causes the vocals to come off as misplaced rantings, lacking the punk-like punch they once used to have. A commanding and articulate performance? Yes. But it doesn't help one from wondering if they still have the aggression left in them to catch the foxes by themselves.