Sweet Heart Sweet Light (Expanded Edition)

With leader Jason Pierce pushing his vocals closer to the front of the mix in recent years, Sweet Heart Sweet Light again finds Spiritualized coming close to accessible pop music in key spots. It provides clarity to a music that previously excelled as an oblique blur. "Too Late" cruises near convention, with a gentle folk melody that could pass for a Mojave 3 number. Elsewhere, there's still plenty of sonic detail; buzzing fuzz and psychedelic orchestration make "Get What You Deserve" a looping narcotic hit that ends in a torrent of feedback. "Headin' for the Top Now" dives deeper into the distorted sonic soup that made Pierce's work with Spacemen 3 such a welcome enigma. Weirdest of all is the unexpected team-up with New Orleans' gumbo-voodoo legend Dr. John for the co-written "I Am What I Am", where both artists find a way to make their presence felt and reach a common ground, where gospel vamps marry Pierce's harshest sonic attacks.