Now that the first decade of the 21st century has become the semi-official season of the indie rock reunion, it's not especially startling that
Buffalo Tom have closed ranks and recorded their first album since 1998's
Smitten. But what does qualify as a pleasant surprise is that
Three Easy Pieces, the Boston trio's first album in nine years, shows
Buffalo Tom haven't lost their touch (or their ability to rock) despite a long layoff. While it's not unfair to say that
Three Easy Pieces picks up where
Smitten left off, in many respects it more clearly recalls the looser and more emphatic attitude of
Sleepy Eyed; the lyrical tone of this album is a bit more personal and emotionally taut than that album, but musically,
Three Easy Pieces conveys a heady air of "turn up the amps and let it rip," and that works to the band's advantage on songs like "Bad Phone Call," "Good Girl" and "September Street," and the musicians are in strong enough form to shine under the circumstances. Several of other songs on
Three Easy Pieces are more measured (especially the numbers sung by bassist
Chris Colbourn, "Pendleton" and "Renovating"), but
Buffalo Tom can turn down the tempos without sacrificing the power or drama of their music, and they handily manage this feat on this album.
Bill Janovitz's rich, powerful voice and potent guitar work are as strong as they've ever been on this disc, and the interplay between him and
Colbourn and drummer
Tom Maginnis remains inspired;
Three Easy Pieces is the sort of reunion album that happened for the right reasons -- because these players still work well together and have good songs to share -- and anyone who ever cared about this frequently underrated band will want to hear them in this impressive return to form.