These days, Nada Surf, the band behind 1996's Weezer rip-off anthem "Popular," makes the kind of music you'd expect to hear at the end of an episode of Grey's Anatomy, during one of those slow-motion montages when every character learns a valuable lesson. That's not really a knock on the Brooklyn trio. It's just that no matter how much guitars crank or drums crash, everything still comes off as confessional, TV-soundtrack-ready pop. At times, singer Matthew Caws's lyrics sound like high school creative writing ("Behind every desire is another one waiting to be liberated, when the first one's sated"). But he's also clever enough to cop a "Stairway to Heaven" line without coming across as an asshole, which ain't easy. On its fifth record, Lucky, the band isn't as surefooted as it was on 2005's The Weight Is a Gift, where each guitar arrangement and vocal harmony felt pored over. Lucky's hooks and high-energy kicks, on the other hand, often leave you with a bland aftertaste, as if the band consulted the same playbook for half the record. More departures like the carnival-esque horns at the end of "Ice on the Wing" and the folky closing track "The Film Did Not Go 'Round" would've provided some much-needed variety.

-- Tim Lowery