Artist: Ace Troubleshooter Album: It's Never Enough Label: Tooth & Nail Records Rating: 7 out of 10

Following the loss of their entire rhythm section, punk-rockers Ace Troubleshooter have returned with their third Tooth & Nail Records release, It's Never Enough, to prove they've still got what it takes. Thankfully, frontman John Warne has not lost his touch for writing catchy songs, which the band continues to deliver with rock power and punk energy. That fusion is used to good effect on "My Defense," which finds Warne and second guitarist Toby David trading shards of angular, distorted guitar before locking in for a big, harmonized hook. "Tempest," another of Never Enough's darker tracks, pairs punchy verses that show off the band's surprisingly-tight new rhythm section with a surging, hard-rocking chorus. Warne has always been a solid lyricist, with songs liked the romantic "Tonight" striking a particularly-resonant chord with fans, but the singer's work here is his best yet. Over Never Enough's most experimental track, the acoustic-based ballad "My Defense," Warne offers a poignant and personal story of loss. "Gone away, gone away forever/ Not to come back home," he sings over spacey guitar arpeggios and big echoey drums. "Don't know if I'll see you when it's my turn to come home./ But I hope so." Warne takes a stab at social commentary on the harder-rocking "Anything," definitely a contender for second single. On it, he asks bleakly, "You go on getting leaner as they dearly sell you anodyne and death/ And you're restless./ Have you knocked at all the doors/ And can you feel at all it's all you can do to go on breathing?" Of course, Ace still offers up a couple of fast and fun pop-punkers here - like the Millencolin-esque first single, "Ball & Chain" and the bouncy "psycho" girl story "Don't Do It Again" - to keep things from getting too depressing. These aren't the album's true standouts, but on the whole, It's Never Enough is light on filler and heavy on strong songwriting and solid musicianship. They might not be breaking any new ground in the genre, but fans of punk-influenced rockers the Foo Fighters and the aforementioned Swedish skate-punkers Millencolin will definitely find plenty to enjoy on Ace Troubleshooter's latest. - Todd Thatcher