Like their peers Weezer, Nada Surf have matured without all the negative aspects that might imply: flitting between driving power-pop, blue-skies post-grunge and acoustic rock balladry, Let Go is an enchanting and subtle album that consigns the band's curmudgeonly, satirical edge to the dumpster. It's often beautifully simple: the curious “Blonde on Blonde” finds frontman Matthew Caws singing of listening to Bob Dylan on his headphones as he strolls in the rain, while “Happy Kid” is a wide-eyed rollercoaster ride that boasts not a single cynical bone in its rosy, plump frame. 

Add this to the fact that there's some wry-but-muscular rock songs here that could take Rivers Cuomo on at his own game (see the fluorescent punk-pop rush of “The Way You Wear Your Head”) and it suddenly becomes clear that Nada Surf are far more than “Popular” — they're a smart, alluring, attractive 21st-century rock band that are so over high school it hurts.