Surprisingly tough and vicious, {|Veruca Salt|}'s fourth album -- appropriately and simply titled {|IV|} -- is the record {|Louise Post|} attempted to make with 2000's {|Resolver|}, the album where she took control of the group after {|Nina Gordon|}'... Read more

Surprisingly tough and vicious, {|Veruca Salt|}'s fourth album -- appropriately and simply titled {|IV|} -- is the record {|Louise Post|} attempted to make with 2000's {|Resolver|}, the album where she took control of the group after {|Nina Gordon|}'s departure. At that point in time, {|Post|}'s adherence to {|alt-rock|} conventions made {|Resolver|} seem a little stale and turgid, but it also didn't help that she recorded it in the aftermath of considerable emotional turmoil; the record reflected that upheaval, but not necessarily in compelling ways, since it often seemed messy and unfocused. Conversely, {|IV|} doesn't arrive with a dramatic backstory, but it packs considerably more drama on a sheer musical level. {|Post|} doesn't stray from {|Veruca Salt|}'s strengths -- this is still the sound of mid-'90s {|alt-rock|}, equal parts heavy {|grunge|} and wistful, witchy {|pop|} -- but her band is tightly wound and hits hard, giving her songs a muscle they lacked last time around. Also, her writing is confident and catchy, whether she's writing rockers (which she does often) or {|ballads|} or songs that fall somewhere in between ({|Blissful Queen|} and {|Salt Flat Epic,|} which truly does sprawl like an epic). {|IV|} may lack the humor and sexiness that made {|American Thighs|} so memorable, but a decade after {|Veruca Salt|}'s heyday, {|Louise Post|} has gotten tougher and stronger, as this assured comeback proves, and in its own way, that's equally appealing. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine Less