Stephen Malkmus

We took the breakup of slack-rock kings Pavement with groundswells of indifference, but the first solo effort from leader Stephen Malkmus actually leaves us impressed. Beneath his hipster veneer, Malkmus bleeds classic rock, and his soft spot for guys like Dylan (“Jo Jo’s Jacket”) and Bowie (“Vague Space”) shines through here. He hasn’t totally abandoned the bookish lyrics and gangly weirdness that made him a favorite of librarians and music critics, but at least he’s dialed back the smugness that always made us want to smack him in the face.