The Lemonheads

Compelled to make “another loud record,” Evan Dando recorded this comeback disc with drummer-producer Bill Stevenson, of Black Flag and Descendents. While not as scruffy as the Lemonheads’ earliest work, it’s still Dando’s most immediate release since his prefame days. And even though it could use a few more hooks, it reaffirms the songwriter’s status as a major power-pop player.

The Lemonheads immediately capsizes the world-weary mope of Dando’s 2003 solo disc, Baby I’m Bored, with “Black Gown,” a blithely pounding opener that sums up the singer’s gangly charm. That track and two others, “Rule of Three” and “Pittsburgh,” demonstrate Dando’s knack for both lifting your spirits and tugging at your heart in under three minutes. The latter song is note-perfect college rock, with its breezy tempo, wistful melody and vérité lyrics (“Sarah said it’s sorta personal”). Interestingly, the songs penned by Stevenson, an old hand at speedy pop-punk, serve as respites from Dando’s mostly up-tempo tunes; the drummer’s “Become the Enemy” is an affecting meditation on aging that pulls up just this side of maudlin. If the melodies on some of the later tracks fail to stick, Dando and his scrappy collaborators never sound like they’re running out of ideas. One gets the feeling that this incarnation could yield ten more records as efficient and enjoyable as this one. — Hank Shteamer

The Lemonheads play Irving Plaza Dec 15.