Artist: Pedro the Lion Album: Achille's Heel Label: Jade Tree Records Rating: 6 out of 10

Songsmith David Bazan’s Pedro the Lion have been at it for nearly a decade, but it wasn’t until 2002’s Control that the mainstream press really took notice of them. However, that album was actually somewhat out-of-character for the generally-mellow Pedro, as it cranked up the tempos and the distortion. The band’s latest Jade Tree Records release, Achille’s Heel, finds multi-instrumentalist Bazan and company taking a half-step back, with some songs harkening back to the style of Pedro’s beautifully-understated debut full-length, It’s Hard to Find a Friend. “The Fleecing,” with its clean-toned electric picking and pretty, shaker-accented chorus, would fit perfectly on that album. Even the track’s lyrics find Bazan returning to one of his favorite topics - his doubting-Thomas approach to faith in God. “Who shall I blame for this sweet and heavy trouble/ for every stupid struggle?” he asks, then answers himself. “I don’t know./ I could buy you a drink./ I could tell you all about it./ I could tell you why I doubt it/ and why I still believe.” Album-opener “Bands with Managers” mines the same stripped-down musical territory, but lyrically, it’s a little more upbeat. “Bands with managers are going places./ Bands with messy hair and smooth white faces,” Bazan sings, seemingly taking a light-hearted shot at the current emo/punk scene. Pedro takes some more musical chances on other songs. “Foregone Conclusions” is a bouncy, strummy pop song that Evan Dando could have written with the Lemonheads, while the gently grooving “Arizona” finds Bazan experimenting with his style - and vocal range - on a soaring, slowly-unfolding chorus. However, the band stumbles a bit when they try to rock a little harder. “Discretion” and “Keep Swinging” are unremarkable, mere filler that doesn’t make the same emotional connection as Bazan’s best work. You can’t really blame him for trying, though. Having established such a unique sound and style with his singularly-downbeat, skeletal approach to songcraft, the singer’s in a tough spot now. You can’t endlessly rewrite the Whole EP, as much as a lot of fans might want that - artists have to continue to grow and change, or they’ll die. So Achille’s Heel definitely finds Bazan suffering from some growing pains, but hopefully they’ll work themselves out on subsequent releases as he discovers where he wants to take Pedro next. Heel seems like the necessary step before taking a big musical leap, but for now, it’s good enough to hold over devotees until that arrives. - Todd Thatcher