The North Carolina band's fifth set of sweet, acoustic-centric indie rock is arguably its most endearing, with tracks like the French- and English-language "Framboise" and the poignant, verbose "Sunny December" among its offerings. None other than R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe can be heard on trumpet throughout the album.
Gathering tracks from Brücken's intermittent and highly collaborative career, this is a welcome reminder of the singer's unsung talents, which unlike the acts she influenced -- including Alison Goldfrapp and Róisín Murphy -- never really broke through to the European pop mainstream. With just one solo studio album, the idea of a career retrospective may seem rather redundant, but this wisely opts to include material from the several outfits she has fronted over her career.