Mock Orange

Captain Love

[4.5/5]

Never has there been a band more worth truly rooting for. The pride of Evanston, Indiana, Mock Orange have consistently delivered challenging and interesting interpretations of emo and indie rock nearly impossible to compare to their peers. Unfortunately, the band’s artistic success hasn’t translated into acknowledgment from the general public, keeping Mock Orange one of the Midwest’s best-kept secrets for more than 10 years. Ideally, that will all change with Captain Love, a heartland masterpiece as relaxing as it is invigorating.

While the band’s first offering in four years plays rather similar to 2004’s Mind Is Not Brain, they let loose and are more percussive and dynamic than before. The banjo-infused ballad "Old Movies" is a bit of a curveball but it somehow segues between two stronger-paced ballads and effortlessly conjures up a vision of the sun setting over a Kansas wheat field. Drummer Heath Metzger once again proves he’s one of the most inventive drummers going (particularly on the flashy “Majestic Raincoat”), and frontman Ryan Grisham and guitarist Joe Asher continue their unique and clever brand of guitar interplay (they really fall in love with note-bending on this one). Captain Love may not tear up the Billboard charts, but look for it on a lot of the better top 10 lists at year’s end. (WEDNESDAY) Kevin Wade

ROCKS LIKE:

Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Ryan Adams’ Easy Tiger

The Shins’ Chutes Too Narrow