Yo La Tengo's critically acclaimed career has spanned three decades, a rarity in the notoriously short lifespan of indie rock, leaving them with very little to prove in 2006.

With their 12th full-length album, the enigmatically titled I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass, Yo La Tengo has made a clear return to the foundations underlying 1997's masterpiece, I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One.

The album's opening track, "Pass The Hatchet I Think I'm Goodkind," is a propulsive and hypnotic rocker, drenched in overdriven squalls of guitar noise. The melody is eerily similar to the classic "Autumn Sweater" from Heart. In fact, most of Afraid is a kissing cousin to Heart - distended album sequencing and bursting, 200-second pop songs given equal weight as roundabout instrumentalism.

In classic Yo La Tengo fashion, noise gives way to sweet melodic pop. "Beanbag Chair" is a breezy track, with a chorus that could have fit snugly onto any of Heavenly's early-'90s twee-pop records. Ira Kaplan delivers a delicate vocal performance, contemplating regret and uncertainty: "I'm losing every race I run / making misery out of fun."

As the album continues, the band hops between a seemingly endless supply of song structures and instrumentation. "Black Flowers" is a thoughtful, emotion-driven ballad, accompanied by an iridescent layer of strings and punctuated by staccato bassoon hits and melodic French horn phrases. When the drums finally kick into the song, its full emotive powers are realized, and the effects are hauntingly beautiful.

Yo La Tengo's more psychedelic tendencies are indulged on tracks like "The Race Is On Again" and "The Room Got Heavy." Blending Byrds-esque chiming guitars with repetitive drumming and garage-rock organ, these songs lend the album a dark undercurrent. There's a pervasive sense of melancholy and instability among even the most elegant pop songs.

Even with all of Kaplan's guitar heroics and the band's tendency to delve deeply into the world of avant-garde experimentation, the albums more song-oriented pieces are its shimmering high points. "Sometimes I Don't Get You" is a nostalgic piano-driven romp through late-'60s folk pop sung in Kaplan's whispering falsetto. "The Weakest Part" sees Georgia Hubley taking lead vocal duties and capturing the melody's bouncy elegance with her beautifully restrained performance. "Mr. Tough" is a whimsical exercise in soulful AM-radio songwriting, complete with a tight, gritty horn section.

After long years on the road, Yo La Tengo has carefully honed its sound and songcraft to effectively encapsulate a myriad of styles. With Afraid, they have given us a grown-up version of Heart with all the baggage that comes with being a band for 20 years.

Star Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Yo La Tengo
I Am Not Afraid Of You and I Will Beat Your Ass
Matador