On the gritty, underappreciated Lung Bread for Daddy, Du Blonde's Beth Jeans Houghton dove into the messiness of heartache and mental health issues; on Homecoming, she looks at them from the other side. Just as her previous album's grungy textures heightened its angst, the slick shine she uses here adds layers of resonance. Homecoming is pop on Houghton's terms: She puts a candy coating over her anxiety and frustration, and uses the massive, glittery choruses of songs like "Smoking Me Out" as armor. Adding a healthy dose of humor and camp to her troubles is very much on-brand for Du Blonde, and one of the most appealing things about the album, whether she's quoting Sunset Boulevard's Norma Desmond over the Pixies-like crunch of "Pull the Plug" or indulging in some witty self-awareness that recalls Celebrity Skin-era Hole on "I Can't Help You There," a collaboration with the colorfully named Farting Suffragettes. Though Houghton invites more people into her creative process than she has in some time, she holds her own with her rock star friends on Homecoming. She recruits Ezra Furman for "I'm Glad We Broke Up," a fizzy hybrid of glam rock and girl group pop that celebrates couples that are better as friends, and reveals that the album's heart is in her brain chemistry on "Medicated," a sweetly aching collaboration with Shirley Manson that sings the praises of meds as part of saving her life. More importantly, there's a growing feeling of inner strength in Houghton's songwriting that equals the artistic confidence she's always had, whether it's the strutting riffs and stacks of harmonies on "Take One for the Team'' or "Undertaker"'s toughness. Though this may be Du Blonde's most musically cohesive work yet, Houghton delivers a few surprising twists toward the end; "Take Me Away" could be a torchy standard if not for its foul-mouthed honesty. While Homecoming is missing some of the eccentricity and intimacy that made Lung Bread for Daddy so powerful, its frankness and playfulness proves Du Blonde can give her music a pop makeover without losing what makes it real. ~ Heather Phares, Rovi

1		Pull the Plug
2		Smoking Me Out
3		I Can't Help You There
4		Ducky Daffy
5		Medicated
6		I'm Glad That We Broke Up
7		All the Way
8		Undertaker
9		Take One for the Team
10		Take Me Away

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