Much talked-about emo hopes Dashboard Confessional, popular with soundtrack compilers and angsty American reformed punks who got girlfriends and decided that it wasn't worth kicking holes in things any more, return with another set of acoustic guitar-led power ballads, and while they tend to stick to the tried and tested quiet bit/loud bit/quiet bit/repeat to fade formula so beloved of the genre, they display a songwriting nous sadly lacking from what has become a rather lacklustre genre. If excessive earnestness in rock music makes you wrinkle your nose in distaste, it's a fairly safe bet that this isn't the album for you, but repeated listens can bring treats for fans of bands as diverse as Feeder, Soundgarden and Blazin' Squad. OK, maybe not Blazin' Squad.

Jaunty power-pop numbers like Rooftops And Invitations snugly rub shoulders with slower, more melancholy fayre like Currents and Slow Decay - don't let the maudlin titles give you room to believe that there's anything challengingly dark here, as it's all pretty standard teen movie topics that are covered. What sets it aside from most is a reluctance to lapse into full-blown rock god mode, an edge to singer/songwriter Chris Carrabba's (admittedly quite grating after over-exposure) voice which keeps it a bit punk (and belies his early days in punk bands) and some nice, emotional production which keeps it largely guitar-based and doesn't resort to big, stupid string sections. It's not going to reinvent anything at all, but it's not bad.