Belle and Sebastian
Belle and Sebastian Write About Love
Rough Trade

After a string of critically lauded albums, a couple of tunes on the “Juno” soundtrack and a 4-year break, Belle and Sebastian have had a surprising transformation: What was once a hip band is now kind of … lame.

Okay, lame is a strong word. But on their new EP Write About Love, the acclaimed Glasgow seven piece is certainly losing their cool.

The band is known for their brand of wistful indie-pop, epitomized on their definitive work, 2003’s Dear Catastrophe Waitress. But now Belle and Sebastian don’t seem fully committed to the tunes that made them famous.

It starts out promising: Opener “I Didn’t See It Coming” begins with a rollicking drum line hastily accompanied by Stevie Jackson’s soft croon — a surprising note, considering the band’s foundation is with lead singer Stuart Murdoch. The song then collapses into an uncharacteristically distorted breakdown, finally succumbing to some energetic synthesizers. It’s only until that odd outburst that Murdoch’s voice finally breaks through, and by then, it’s practically over.

The rest of the intro slowly reminds you of the sound you’ve missed. “Come On Sister” and highlight “I Want the World to Start” sound like old Belle cuts, bringing you back to bright, familiar territory.

All goes downhill after the supremely lame “Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John,” a track that supplies the ultimate evidence of the band’s fall from hipster grace. It’s a collaboration with none other than your mother’s favorite piano-playing songster, Norah Jones, whose voice doesn’t give the track the sophistication that was intended; it just makes it sound adult-alternative. Let the VH1 crowd rejoice.

The album picks up again with the ‘60s pop throwback “Write About Love” and the jazzy “The Ghost of Rockschool” — a welcome memento of the nostalgic songwriting these wounded introverts are known for.

Despite such pleasant spots, Write About Love simply sounds too cold. With the album’s forays into more serious territory, the band has lost the fuzzy reverie that gave them so much charm in the first place. (6/10)