Write About Love

The period between Write About Love and its predecessor, 2006’s The Life Pursuit, was the longest gap by far in the discography of the usually industrious Belle and Sebastian, but the break seems to have been good for the Scottish indie-pop icons. With Life Pursuit producer Tony Hoffer back on board, the band delivers another batch of perfectly crafted, ‘60s pop-influenced gems with typically sardonic, sometimes inscrutable lyrics. Unusually for the normally insular B&S world, leader Stuart Murdoch shares the spotlight not only with his bandmates – Stevie Jackson on the impossibly chirpy “I’m Not Living in the Real World,” Sarah Martin on “I Didn’t See It Coming” and “I Can See Your Future” – but also with guest artists Norah Jones (“Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John”) and young British actress Carey Mulligan (the title track). Hoffer provides properly grand orchestral-pop frameworks for the perky, hook-laden tunes, but also leaves room for gentle, acoustic balladry on “Read the Blessed Pages.” And for all of Belle and Sebastian’s unabashed popcraft, tracks like “You Calculating Bimbo” thankfully find them still endearingly self-conscious enough to pause dramatically after the line “I pause for an effect.”