Guster’s Lost and Gone Forever and Keep It Together are two of my favorite albums, so I had high hopes for Ganging Up on the Sun. Unfortunately, very few of the songs play to Guster’s strengths; their delicious vocal harmonies, clever lyrics, and killer pop hooks are in short supply. The music sounds almost anonymous – many of the songs could be by any competent indie pop band.

But it’s still “Worth listening!” because “Manifest Destiny” is very good; “C’mon” is good but a little desperate, and there are a couple more true-to-form Guster tracks on there.

I don’t want to sound like I oppose the evolution of this band. Lost and Gone Forever and Keep It Together are very different-sounding albums, but they both let Guster show what really makes them special. This one, not so much.