Temple of Low Men

CROWDED HOUSE

Capitol

While Temple of Low Men lacks centerpieces like Crowded House's 1986 debut — the hit singles "Don't Dream It's Over" and "Something So Strong" — it's ultimately a more adventurous and emotionally potent album. From sly psychedelia to tender ballads, Neil Finn and company work the post-Beatles angle to sublime ends.

This article appears in Aug 2-8, 2006.

Eric Snider is the dean of Bay area music critics. He started in the early 1980s as one of the founding members of Music magazine, a free bi-monthly. He was the pop music critic for the then-St. Petersburg...