Ambitious and dramatic, Grant Lee Buffalo's music veers from visionary roots rock to U2-style emotional grandeur at a time when most bands seem reluctant to risk anything nearly so bold. As a songwriter and guitarist, Grant Lee Phillips revels in melody and rich, enveloping textures that stand in stark contrast to so much monochromatic rock. Best of all, he is an extraordinary singer whose voice floats from an intimate croon to a gorgeous, spine-tingling falsetto.

GLB's producer and bassist, Paul Kimble, left the group after its third album, Copperopolis, came out in 1996, so Phillips and drummer Joey Peters drafted keyboardist Jon Brion and former Tonic bassist Dan Rothschild to fill out the lineup on Jubilee. Producer Paul Fox defines a clean, crisp sound for the band, while noteworthy guests like Michael Stipe, Robyn Hitchcock and the Wallflowers' Rami Jaffee lend a hand. But the main story on Jubilee is that on songs like "Testimony," Phillips continues to evoke an utterly unique world composed of American lore, biblical references, literary flair and stirring emotional honesty. It's a singular course he's been charting steadily for four albums now. But Jubilee's confidence and power suggest that Grant Lee Buffalo just might garner a following along that road. (RS 793)

ANTHONY DECURTIS