3.5/5 stars

As a collective, Broken Social Scene has released three sprawling albums where the many members piled instrument upon instrument for full, rich music that became sort of a signature sound.

Their latest release, Forgiveness Rock Record, sees them make the switch from producer David Newfeld to Josh McEntire of Tortoise (with the band co-producing) and has the emphasis put on the ROCK aspect of the title.

“It’s sort of the most focused record we made in a long time,” said singer Kevin Drew to CTV.ca, and other band members credited McEntire’s mellow style and the break from touring’s hectic lifestyle as affecting the album.

This isn’t to say that the band has sold out for their first album since 2005′s self-titled effort. In general, the song structure is more straightforward with an added emphasis on the lyrics and less on dreamy soundscapes, although there are still interludes and instrumentals as the album runs over an hour.

Lead single “World Sick” acts as sort of a transition to the band’s new approach, with Drew allowing the band to provide the lift to the anthemic chorus while he shows restraint in his vocals, sounding almost weary at times. This is in contrast to his raw, shrieking style on older tracks like “Ibi Dreams of Pavement” and “It’s All Gonna Break”.

Tracks like “Art House Director“, “Water in Hell” and “Texico Bitches” are more traditional rockers, with only the name stopping the latter from fitting in comfortably on your local adult-contemporary radio station.

“Meet Me in the Basement” is an instrumental track and a personal highlight, as it’s one of the “big” moments on the album, mixing stadium-sized drums with a pile of instrumentalists pouring their hearts into a sunny and glorious palette of sound.

That track, as well as “Highway Slipper Jam” and “All to All” are flashbacks to BSS’ earlier records, and the trio of Leslie Feist, Emily Haines and Amy Millan do make an appearance together on “Sentimental X’s“, part of a mellow back-to-back with the sensual slow-burner “Sweetest Kill“.

The last track on the album is notable because it came from the sessions in between takes for Forgiveness Rock Record, which became an EP titled Lo-Fi For the Dividing Nights that came with pre-orders from the Arts and Crafts website.

“Me and My Hand” is a short ballad of loneliness and how some people deal with it, and fits in well with the acoustic, mostly instrumental songs on the EP that were put together while killing time.

That pre-order came with a one-year membership to the Broken Social Scene fan club, but I have a feeling that it may attract some more members after this album hits shelves.

People who may not “get” the earlier BSS albums will be better suited to this accessible summer rock record, while older fans will find the transition to this particular style an easy one, while slightly lamenting the wild grandeur of their older material.

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Next week in the summer of HEAT (Hearing Everyone’s Awesome Tunes) is Holy F*** and maybe Sleigh Bells if NHL playoffs are at a lull, work isn’t taking up my time and I feel like having less of a life.

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