Since he went solo back in the early '90s, ex-True Believer Alejandro Escovedo has blended the lyricism of Bruce Springsteen and Jackson Browne with the raw power of the Stooges and the Velvet Underground, often adding traditional elements like Latin rhythms and even chamber music. The result is music with heart, brains and a burning sense of adventure. The downside is that Escovedo's broad musical palette sometimes plays tug of war with the deeply spiritual and emotional resonance of his words.

Escovedo pulls back slightly on With These Hands, the Austin, Texas, singer/songwriter's third solo album, offering simpler tunes and more universal truths. On "Put You Down," the hypnotic rocker that opens the record, Escovedo's words come across stark and naked, as though he no longer feels a need to wrap them up in layers of guitars and orchestral arrangements. With a fleeting string sample and tasteful feedback weaved into the cracks between the verses, his cautionary tale of addiction embodies all that is strong about this album. Escovedo neatly balances his feel for the conventional pop song with his more experimental tendencies.

Among the highlights are a stirring duet with Willie Nelson on the countryish "Nickel and a Spoon," a bitter coming-of-age song, "Crooked Frame," whose melody is propelled by the hardsoft dynamics of "Teen Spirit"-style grunge, and "2 a.m.," a sublime ballad that floats on a gentle breeze of piano and crisp acoustic guitar. The album's more personal songs include a six-minute spoken elegy for the late Velvet Underground guitarist Sterling Morrison ("Tugboat") and the title track, a westernlike epic about an immigrant's journey to the promised land. Escovedo wrote the latter tune for his father, and it features the panoramic percussion work of his brother Pete (an ex-member of Santana) and niece Sheila E.

Escovedo's more stripped-down approach doesn't always work. On the maudlin ballad "Tired Skin" and the fatuous Rolling Stones rip-off "Guilty Was His Name," Escovedo comes off sounding like any of a thousand other roots rockers. Although With These Hands doesn't always reach the dizzying heights of his previous work, it far eclipses most singer/songwriter fare. (RS 732)

MARK KEMP