The great thing about Ben Kweller [ tickets ]'s eponymous third album is that his influences, while still intact, are not nearly as in your face as they were on his earlier work. Those influences now have been distilled into what could only be described as Kweller's own sound, one of literate pop.

At 25, Kweller already has the career experience of someone 10 years his senior. Having formed the band Radish in his early teens (recording four albums prior to his solo career), his songwriting has long been marked by a preternatural sophistication. This is the album where the pieces seem to culminate and come into their own.

The power-pop blast of the opener, "Run," sets the tone for the majority of the album with its mesh of sunshiny piano, guitar, bass, drums and vocals. Kweller's lyrical maturity is evident here, ruminating on young adulthood and its internal and external complexities. While the endearing aspects of his debut ,"Sha Sha," still shine through, it's apparent Kweller's songwriting has progressed well beyond his days singing about "watching 'Planet of The Apes' on TV."

Listening to this, Kweller's career-high at the young age of 25, one can only wonder what the future holds for the native Texan-cum-Brooklynite.