Mark Kozelek performs another act of musical alchemy with "Tiny Cities," which reimagines the pop tunes of Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock as deeply inward, poignant evocations of love and grief, along with a kind of soulful endurance. This isn't the first time Kozelek has found a gold thread worth saving and woven a whole coat out of it -- his solo album "What's Next to the Moon" performed a similar act of poetic transubstantiation on the songs of AC/DC. Frankly, after listening to Kozelek's haunted version of the title track, hearing Modest Mouse's rendition is nearly painful. (Sorry, MM fans.)

Kozelek deserves credit for hearing the authentic poetry in Brock's associative lyrics, but the musical atmosphere on this record is wholly his own. Using a spare palette of acoustic and electric guitars with occasional -- and exquisitely tasteful -- strings (a la Beck's "Sea Change," which comes close to the mood of this album), Kozelek creates a unified statement that stands with his very best work, including the previous Sun Kil Moon album "Ghosts of the Great Highway," his solo project "Rock and Roll Singer," and great Red House Painters albums like "Ocean Beach" and "Songs for a Blue Guitar." This album also hangs together better than "Ghosts," which was so bursting with new ideas that tracks like "Duk Koo Kim" and "Gentle Moon" almost seemed to belong on different albums. "Tiny Cities," on the other hand, is sequenced so effectively that from the first moments of "Exit Does Not Exist" -- with its glittering harmonics -- the reader is drawn on a journey to an underworld in which every song seems to deepen the mood and intensity of the last.

There's world-weariness and melancholy in Kozelek's voice, but sadness this distilled and many-layered attains a kind of ecstasy of its own. His voice also has a confidence and subtlety here that shows a steady maturation from his previous work: he has fully arrived in the place he set out for after leaving behind the somewhat precious vocal affectations of his early Red House Painters material, as lovely as those albums were. The title track also performs the neat trick of seeming like the perfect song for our shadowy, apocalyptic time: "We're going down the road to tiny cities made of ashes..." Kozelek's revisioning of it sounds like a 21st century Nick Drake facing the end of the world with wit and an insistence that creating timeless beauty is the best revenge. Like the best of Kozelek's work, this album only seems more carefully constructed and deep with repeated listening. It's hard not to play it over and over.

Kozelek is one of the most original and underappreciated musicians working these days, and this is not only one of the best albums of the year, it's one of the handful of albums from our time that will still sound fresh and wise 30 years from now.

... But honestly, I think this album is brilliant.

I know nothing of Sun Kil Moon/Red House Painters/insert other name-dropping incident here], but I AM familiar with being a *huge* Modest Mouse fan.

That being said, I also have eclectic (admittedly bizarrely so) taste, and when this version of "Neverending Math Equation" was put on a mix CD for me, I didn't even realize what it was (I didn't have the track listing handy). I just thought, "Wow, this is a nice song... I wonder who is this?" Then it started sounding eerily familiar and as it dawned on me what the song actually was, I couldn't stop giggling. Bought the entire album, and now it pretty much lives on repeat.

If you're a "Modest Mouse Purist," so to speak, you may not like this album... AT ALL. And from what I've read, if you're a die-hard fan of *this* artist, you probably won't like it either. But if you're either a) addicted to cover songs, and/or b) readily open to and fascinated by the idea of reinterpreting different musical styles, then I recommend not only getting this album, but also getting the Modest Mouse originals and enjoy the Dichotomy Circus that ensues...

... it does. For those who like Sun Kil Moon, the flavor of this record is very reminiscent of Ghost of the Great Highway, a very delicate, lonesome-road kind of sound. How Modest Mouse's brash, disjointed edginess got melded to this style I have no idea, but it works, way, way better than you'd expect. This stuff goes right up with the Ghosts material for soul-searing beauty. I think Kozelek fans will like the outcome more than Modest Mouse fans will, but any way you slice it this is a terrific record.

The first four songs rival anything in the Kozelek catalogue and overall the whole album is a must for his fans. If you enjoyed the first S.K.M album then this should be a no question purchase. Much like 'What's Next to the Moon' this album really makes you look at the lyrics of I.Brock in a new light. I've never been a big Modest Mouse fan but it's no matter, the songs are strong on their own merits. The album has not left my cd player since I bought it. I can understand why people may initially be upset at an eleven track LP that clocks in at just over thirty minutes but don't let that small issue prevent you from buying it. The songs are fantastic. Another fine album.

I am a huge Mark Kozelek fan and I was very glad to get my copy of Tiny Cities recently in the mail, I have not stopped playing this cd since I have gotten it and I will not tire of it for some time. The chord changes and Guitar playing are like Leo Kottke "fantastic" but it is Mark's voice which is the best I have heard on any cd from him yet. Though mark did not write the words on this album the music is really great. I saw him in Boston last year at the Middle East Club and got his autograph signed as MK on my cd I brought along with me and he is a great live artist too. This album has a Red House Painters sound to it but different and better in my opinion, every song is great on this cd. Buy this cd you will not be disapointed. Mark is a underated artist that I feel will still hit the big time if his songs get played on mainstream radio. Enjoy Tiny Cities