Mighty Mighty Bosstones

Bring on the rock; bring on the roll. The Bosstones come back strong after their last album, Pay Attention, bombed and ended their long relationship with Mercury. On A Jackknife to a Swan, the Bosstones have signed with their manager's label, SideOneDummy, and unleash the rock. It isn't quite as hard as their early '90s releases, but they have used the intervening decade to pick up more pop sensibility and it shows. There are the hard rocking songs, blasting horns and all, but there are also poppier ones (for the Bosstones, anyways), and the blending of the two makes an interesting album. The requisite ska/reggae songs are here, and the ska influence can be heard in most of the songs. Despite ska's fall from the mainstream, the Bosstones haven't abandoned it, not like anyone would have expected them to. Fans looking for another Devil's Night Out will be disappointed, but with A Jackknife to a Swan, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones show there's still some juice in the tank.