Jubilee Dive

Though three-fifths of this Texas band was formerly in Slobberbone, there isn't a speck of slobber amid the sonic sheen of the new incarnation's debut. Instead, frontman Brent Best now positions his sound at the high-gloss juncture of arena rock and power pop, with barely a nod toward the roadhouse dive.

With Slobberbone's drummer Tony Harper and guitarist Jess Barr reuniting with Best, two new recruits--keyboardist Chad Stockslager and bassist Keith Killoren, both from Dallas's Budapest One--bolster the harmonies and the arrangements. While it's difficult to resist the hard-driving uplift of "Hummalong" and "Unhinged," the power balladry of "Holy Moses" and "Wonderous Life" (both approaching seven minutes) might have packed twice the punch with half the bloat.

Elsewhere, the country tinge of "Fireflies" comes close to the Eagles, the elaborate production of "You Won't Forget" (with synthesized strings, cloying harmonies, and a brass arrangement) veers from Beatles into ELO territory, and "Des Moines" sounds like a generic lovelorn road song. In terms of aural precision, it's hard to fault the production of Matt Pierce, but the album almost begs for an editor. --Don McLeese