Album Review: Camper Van Beethoven La Costa Perdida

Camper Van Beethoven first started peddling their distinctive brand of collegiate rock back in the early-'80s, blending disparate strains of rock, ska, country, folk and Middle Eastern sounds into one fun and esoteric melange. They broke for most of the '90s, and La Costa Perdida is just their second collection of originals since their return – with 2004's sprawling treatise, New Roman Times – and seventh overall (not counting their 2002 remake of Fleetwood Mac's Tusk).

Many of the more idiosyncratic kinks of yore have been toned down now, at times making them sound akin to frontman David Lowery's more straightforward country-rock band Cracker – although Jonathan Segel's violin squalls are still in evidence as a familiar touchstone. Ostensibly an album about their former stomping ground of northern California, what really links these ten tracks are Lowery's oft-eccentric lyrics, the sometimes abstract arrangements and the innate chemistry that still exists between the players. It's a meandering and cruisy listen, far more subdued than we're used to, but it flows nicely – only the ska-infused Peaches In The Summertime really lifts the tempo. Elsewhere the acerbic Too High For The Love-in, the languid Someday Our Love Will Sell Us Out, the sprawling, sun-kissed Northern Californian Girls, the beautifully schizophrenic Summer Days and the softly rollicking title track all recall former glories.

Maturity and craftsmanship mightn't necessarily suit Camper Van Beethoven as much as their former more impulsive, spontaneous and slightly surreal persona, but La Costa Perdida is nonetheless a strong effort, and it's great to have them still around making music. A merely good album from a still great band.