So I finally went out and bought this disc after practically months of deliberation as to whether or not this was an appropriate thing for me, a confirmed agnostic, to do. Y'see, Pedro the Lion are Christian and make no bones about it. They even sing about it sometimes, which, to be frank, gives me the creeps almost as much as old ladies talking detailing their sexual exploits on "Ricki Lake."

Surprisingly enough, I don't regret my purchase one bit. Yeah, there are a few songs that pretty straight- forwardly address lead singer David Bazan's faith issues, but he's not trying to convert anyone-- he's just trying to tell some good stories, and some of the stories he has to tell are about his faith. It may seem impossible, but he does this all in the least smarmy, unpleasant way imaginbable. It also helps that the music is, well, for lack of a better word, bitchin'. Most of the album is given over to strummy, downtempo, kind of typical indie rock, with a few upbeat numbers thrown in for variety. So you want a comparison? Alright, s'kind of like a less- produced Luna with a better melodic sense and a less annoying vocalist. (Admit it, Dean Wareham's aged whine is more than just a little grating.)

When it comes right down to it, there are only maybe four songs on the album that expressly address religion, and of those four, two of them are bitterly critical of mainstream Christianity ("Secret of the Easy Yoke" even has a line that goes: "I still have never seen you and some days/ I don't love you at all"). That leaves eight songs to wrestle with topics of diverse as why girls should let their leg hair grow (in "When They Really Get to Know You They Will Run," Bazan sings, "I don't like girls the way they are, so shave their legs and make them look like movie stars") to general loneliness (as in "The Longest Winter," where he looks forward to spending the rest of his life living "in a studio apartment with a cat for a wife"). Okay, so those topics really aren't that diverse at all, but it's indie rock, fer chrissakes.

Probably the most endearing thing about Pedro the Lion is that they make you think. Bazan has a way of stating his case and leaving the answer to the question open- ended for his audience to ponder on their own. Causing thought processes to occur within its audience is not usually an earmark of pop music of any kind, so when it happens, I'm generally pleasantly surprised. So the guy's Christian. At least he's a smart Christian.

-Jeremy Schneyer