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**Built to Spill - Ultimate Alternative Wavers**
★★★★☆

Doug Martsch has always been indie rock's most reluctant guitar hero, a man who could shred with the best of them but preferred to wrap his six-string wizardry in flannel and existential doubt. After decades of crafting some of the most emotionally resonant guitar anthems in the alternative canon, Built to Spill returns with "Ultimate Alternative Wavers," an album that finds the Boise trio both looking backward and pushing forward into uncharted territory.

To understand where Built to Spill sits today, you need to trace the arc of their most essential works. "There's Nothing Wrong with Love" (1994) established Martsch as a songwriter capable of mining profound beauty from life's mundane disappointments. Songs like "Car" and "Twin Falls" showcased his ability to pair intricate guitar work with lyrics that felt like overheard conversations with your most philosophically inclined friend. The album's lo-fi production couldn't mask the ambition lurking beneath – here was a band that understood that indie rock could be both intimate and epic.

That ambition reached its apotheosis with 1997's "Perfect from Now On," an album that remains their masterpiece and one of the finest achievements in '90s alternative rock. Clocking in at just eight songs across 68 minutes, it was Built to Spill's "OK Computer" – a sprawling meditation on time, memory, and the weight of existence. "Randy Described Eternity" and "Velvet Waltz" became indie rock standards, with Martsch's guitar lines weaving in and out of consciousness like half-remembered dreams. The album proved that you could be cerebrally complex and emotionally devastating simultaneously.

"Keep It Like a Secret" (1999) saw the band perfecting their formula while making their most accessible statement. Producer Phil Ek helped streamline their sound without sacrificing its essential weirdness, resulting in tracks like "Carry the Zero" and "The Plan" that could have been radio hits in a more just universe. It was Built to Spill at their most focused, proving they could write tight three-minute gems without losing their exploratory spirit.

Which brings us to "Ultimate Alternative Wavers," an album that feels like a conversation between all these previous incarnations. Recorded sporadically over several years, it captures a band comfortable with their legacy but not content to simply repeat it. The opening track, "Gonna Lose," immediately establishes the album's central tension – Martsch's vocals, weathered but still capable of soaring, float over guitar work that's simultaneously familiar and surprising.

The album's standout tracks showcase different facets of Built to Spill's evolution. "Fool's Gold" might be their most straightforward rocker in years, with a riff that recalls "Keep It Like a Secret's" directness while maintaining the band's signature unpredictability. "Elements" finds Martsch in full philosophical mode, questioning the nature of reality over seven minutes of shifting dynamics that recall "Perfect from Now On's" epic scope. Meanwhile, "Understood" strips things back to basics, proving that sometimes the most profound statements come in the simplest packages.

What's most impressive about "Ultimate Alternative Wavers" is how it manages to sound unmistakably like Built to Spill while acknowledging that the band – and their audience – have aged. There's a weariness to some of these songs that feels earned rather than affected. Martsch's guitar solos, still technically impressive, now carry the weight of experience. When he launches into an extended passage on "Spiderweb," it doesn't feel like showing off – it feels like a master craftsman demonstrating techniques refined over decades.

The production, handled by the band themselves, strikes an ideal balance between the lo-fi charm of their early work and the clarity needed to showcase their musical complexity. Every guitar layer is audible without cluttering the mix, and bassist Jason Albertini and drummer Steve Gere provide the kind of rhythmic foundation that makes Martsch's flights of fancy feel grounded.

Twenty-five years after "Perfect from Now On," Built to Spill remains one of indie rock's most essential bands, and "Ultimate Alternative Wavers" proves they're far from finished. It may not reinvent their sound, but it deepens it, adding new layers to an already rich catalog. In an era of constant reinvention and viral moments, there's something deeply satisfying about a band that simply continues to excel at what