After releasing two solid albums ("Blueprints For The Black Market" and "Never Take Friendship Personal") and extensively touring the globe for two years, Winter Haven, Fla., emo-ish act Anberlin reteamed with longtime producer Aaron Sprinkle for the highly anticipated "Cities."

Much like the jump in sound and growth between the group’s first two albums, Anberlin has taken another huge step forward with this record. "Blueprints For The Black Market" and "Never Take Friendship Personal" were good albums, but Anberlin has made its first great one with "Cities." Every song is an absolute winner because of the band's maturing songwriting and performance skills.

After the cinematic introduction piece "(Debut)," the album is launched with the rocking "Godspeed," which is the first single from "Cities." Drummer Nathan Young’s energetic, almost punk-like performance; vocalist Stephen Christian’s taut voice; and the thick, driving guitars show Anberlin is clearly in form and on fire from the word go. The next song, "Adelaide," could also be the follow-up single, thanks to its catchy and memorable chorus. Meanwhile, the keyboard-driven duo of "There Is No Mathematics To Love And Loss" and "Reclusion" keep the album's rock potion flowing, as do the uptempo numbers "Alexithymia" (which bears a striking resemblance to latter-day Cave In near its finale), "Hello Alone" and the crashing "Dismantle. Repair."

The band experiments a little on the predominately acoustic "The Unwinding Cable Car" by allowing Christian to carry the song purely with his stunning vocal melodies. This is also evident in "A Whisper & A Clamor" and the epic "(*Fin)," which still retain the familiar Anberlin sound.

This special edition of "Cities" contains a plethora of added material. For bonus tracks, there is the easy-going "Uncanny," which is every bit as worthy as any of the album’s original tracks. There are also covers of "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out" by The Smiths and "The Promise" by When In Rome. They sound a little out of context in their demo form, but are solid renditions nonetheless. Also included in the bonus material is a 29-minute black-and-white documentary DVD surrounding the making of "Cities" (informative, revealing and a must for diehards) and features like the footage of the backing vocals being recorded for "Godspeed"—definitely the pick of the bunch.

» anberlin.com