This is the sound of getting older? We'd like to offer ten tracks as evidence that Jeff and Steven McDonald's real last name is Faust. That somewhere out there in an attic in Southern California there are portraits of the brothers, Rob Hecker and Roy McDonald that are busy doing the aging.

When these four members of the most impactful Redd Kross lineup reunited in 2006, that was cause for celebration. That they are able to make in 2012, fully fifteen years after their last studio album, 1997's Show World, a record as fresh and exhilarating as Researching the Blues is nothing short of astonishing. From the full-throttle opening title track through the Rubber Soul-recalling "Meet Frankenstein, the pure power-pop sparkle of "Choose to Play", this is a winner. Maybe most surprising are the sunny, youthful hamony-laden janglers  "Dracula's Daughters" and "One of the Good Ones", songs that could only have some from the left coast. And if they've got a lighter pop touch that Redd Kross in their more blistering salad days, ain't nothing wrong with that. In fact, critics are finding a lot right about this record.  To wit:

All Music: It contains some of the hookiest songs and most thrilling performances of their almost-35-year career in rock & roll. 

Dusted: Researching the Blues gets just the type of big, bright, anthemic sound it deserves, and while the guitars certainly crunch when they need to, there isn’t an excessive reliance on the thick, chunky production popular in the ’90s one could potentially see Redd Kross falling back on.

The Guardian: the seventh Redd Kross album has a satisfying crunch to the guitars, and riffs strong enough to remind listeners why the group were once expected to be stars. Tremendous fun for powerpop lovers from start to finish.

Paste: Researching the Blues breezes through the finish line where others are left in the dust, hacking up a fit and grabbing at their knees.

What a thrill to see that not only is there a second--or third--act for Redd Kross, that if this record is any indication, it may be as exciting as the first. Time for you to start digging Researching the Blues.