When the Elephant 6 collective first began putting out records in the mid-1990s, teen angst and raw grunge pop dominated the airwaves, making the E6's baroque psychedelia a whimsical reference to a bygone age. Since then, neo-psych has become the chief aesthetic of much of indie culture: from the orchestral ambitions of Sufjan Stevens to the brown acid bombast of Comets on Fire. In this milieu, the Apples in Stereo--perhaps the most definitive E6 band of the collective's heyday--return with a whopper, the epic, 24-track NEW MAGNETIC WONDER, and a lesson for the droners in what a psych revival can be.

Keyboardist Bill Doss, bassist Eric Allen, guitarist John Hill, and new drummer John Dufilho (ex-Deathray Davies) join Apples mastermind Robert Schneider in a blissed-out parade of kaleidoscopic pop with enough headphone candy to satisfy the stoners plus melodies for the soccer moms. NEW MAGNETIC WONDER is full of positive anthems: "Can You Feel It?" kicks off the album like a rush of musical serotonin, while "Energy" reinvigorates lyrical platitudes ("the world is made of energy/and the world is the possibility") with tent-revival enthusiasm. The backwards piano trickery and interlocking riffs of "Same Old Drag" refute the negativity of its title, while "Sun is Out" relocates Guided By Voices' basement on McCartney's "Penny Lane." Learning from other definitive neo-psych moments such as XTC's SKYLARKING and the Stone Roses' debut, NEW MAGNETIC WONDER keeps its hooks in abundance and sounds referential without ever sounding dated. A swirling thrill.

New Magnetic Wonder, the Apples in Stereo's return after a five-year hiatus, is one of their best records in a career made up of consistently fine recordings. Anyone expecting a return to the experimental, lo-fi wizardry of their early albums may feel let down by New Magnetic Wonder, but on the other hand, anyone fearing a return to the bland stripped-down and noisy sound of Velocity of Sound need not worry. What they have delivered instead is a crisply recorded set of bouncing rockers, sweetly strummed ballads, and vaguely trippy mid-tempo tracks that are full of hooks, melodies, and goofy fun. Over a base of solidly rocking bass, guitar, and drums (as well as Robert Schneider's reliably chirpy vocals), the band and their cohorts (the credits read like an E6 who's who, including Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel, Bill Doss and W. Cullen Hart of the Olivia Tremor Control, and John Fernandes, who has played clarinet with just about all the E6 bands) create a rich soundscape of Mellotron, backing vocals, percussion, and vintage keyboards that envelops the record in a warm and lush haze at times and fills it with sunshine at others. Even more than previous Apples releases, it's a record that won't win any points for being profound or meaningful. Tracks like "Can You Feel It?" or "Energy" are breezy to the point of invisible, but if they don't get you singing along like a fool right away, you've probably come to the wrong party and should go find a Bright Eyes record instead. The more sedate tunes that dominate the second half of the record, like the yearning and psychedelic "Open Eyes" or the melancholy "Radiation," give the album some balance (and in the Mellotron-soaked epic "Beautiful Machine, Pts. 3-4," one of the record's finest moments), but it's the charming fluff like "Same Old Drag" and "Play Tough" that wins the day in the end. The Apples' successful return to the indie scene should be hailed with a hearty embrace (and a tear for the departure of drummer Hilarie Sidney, whose two contributions to the record, "Sundial Song" and "Sunday Sounds," are quite nice) for anyone who likes their pop silly but intelligently played and arranged. Welcome back, Apples! ~ Tim Sendra

Rolling Stone (p.78) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "NEW MAGNETIC WONDER is full of bright melodies that veer between the Beach Boys and the Kinks..."

Rolling Stone (p.113) - Included in Rolling Stone's "50 Top Albums of the Year 2007" -- "Hypercatchy songs about encountering the eternal and getting your head together..."

Spin (p.82) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Simple, catchy, unabashedly cheery -- even while exploring a new musical scale..."

Entertainment Weekly (p.76) - "[E]ach of its 24 tracks snaps and crackles with Schneider's sugary, peerless pop." -- Grade: A-

Q (p.116) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[A]nyone who likes their psychedelia flavoured with a hint of bubblegum and a hunk of Jeff Lynne should head straight for 'Energy''s layered harmonies or the widescreen rumble of 'Beautiful Machine.'"

CMJ (p.42) - "[T]he band's most expansive production yet makes like caramel on the Apples....A strong return."

No Depression (p.113) - "Sweeping melodic hooks cut through densely packed musical arrangements -- Schneider used 96 track of instrumentation on some tunes..."