Heart of Nowhere

This band has succeeded at writing an exceptional album that’s both intimate and full of pop-hook goodness, all without using over-the-top production techniques.

After three successful releases, this album sees Fink take stock of his life after years of touring and come to the realization that he, along with his friends and family, have long since grown up and left his much revered youth behind.

Their fourth is a satisfying blend of youth and experience, at its best when raw feelings and twenty20-something anxieties chafe against its smooth, midtempo rock.

When Fink sings, “I think still after all these years, something still burns,” on the chorus, seven tracks in, we’re left feeling less like teens trapped on an island and more like parents who have beaten the odds and stayed together. Similar disruptions that take us away from “teenland” are the records’ main fault, though it’s largely successful as a sunny summer album.

While it's pleasantly effected for the most part, it's hard to get involved in someone else's nostalgia.