Adam Franklin: Bolts Of Melody

Swervedriver fans who've missed the band's molten guitar-pop sound ought to perk up immediately at "Seize The Day," the first song on Adam Franklin's debut solo album, Bolts Of Melody. Even when performing a fundamentally conventional piece of midtempo rock, the sleepy monotone voice of the former Swervedriver frontman remains unmistakable, as do his string-bending guitar solos. Bolts Of Melody isn't as magisterial as Swervedriver's best, but it's in the same ballpark. When Franklin dips into the trippy, syrupy surf-rock instrumental "Theme From LSD," or the spacious, whammy-afflicted ballad "Morning Rain," his trademark crumbling sound is still transporting. It's good to have him back, and on point.