3 out of 5

Label: Barsuk

Producer: Trent Bell (mixed by)

An opening instrumental track called ‘Coffins R’ Us’ which ushers in a dark electro vibe; ‘Drowaton’s cover was more sober than the previous two disc’s, but ‘Change Remains’ flat black background with a neon color wheel as it’s centerpiece offers an odd juxtaposition of tones for a group that’s fluttered through varying frenetic levels of weirdo pop.  Onto the grounded ‘Natural,’ which maintains an expected head-nodding beat but feels a bit more sincere or serious than what’s come before, and it’s followup sister track ‘Paralyzed,’ smoothing out the quirks and bringing in a touch of somberness – always hinted at one Mints albums, even back to ‘Dream’s’ ‘Pulling Out My Hair’, but generally shushed off to an album’s fringes; bringing these emotions to the fore seems to confirm that this album is to be a little different.  But like its title suggests, ‘Change’ is an in-with-the-new, in-with-the-old approach, as that moody dancefloor sound quickly shifts gear to mix in the light-hearted funk their first album (‘Zoomba’), the breeziness of album two (’40 Fingers’), and the slightly more ballsy stance of their previous Barsuk output.  Sometimes this pick-and-mix synthesizes something fresh and ear catching – the single Power Bleed runs with the then electro punk fad and spins it into an absolutely pleasing grooving pop tune, and ‘Sesame (Untie the Wrath)’ is a hard hitting combo that ups the bassline to the max and has Allen Vest rasping the title line like its a curse.  The production is back on par with ‘Dream,’ everything sounding really rich and live, but musically the album has trouble getting away from some core beats – track tend to come in pairs, the beginnings almost indistinguishable until a vocal or guitar line comes in the shake it up.  The taste of a less goofy emotional palette does seem to stick around, with the stock of surreal visual references kept as counterpoints to generally understandable lyrical themes instead of the focus of any given track, but the overall vibe is unsteady, the group so focused on coming up with slippery, slick beats that the guts of the disc feel a bit lacking.

The Mints haven’t really grown from album to album so much as attempted something slightly different each time and committing to it fully.  ‘Change Remains’ shows the polish of a group that knows their strengths.  Taken a single at a time, every track here is solid and toe-tap-worthy, but its also the band’s first disc to not have a cohesive feeling attached to it.