New Seasons (Yep Roc, 2007)

Prolific. Versatile. And highly talented. The Sadies, the pride of Canada, are all of these things, and this might just be their best album yet.

These boys are polite, so they start with "Introduction," a 47-second fun instrumental that sounds like it might have been too country for last year's "Tales of the Rat Fink" soundtrack. Along the way and often, however, you will no doubt think of The Byrds, whose psychedelic folk and country The Sadies ride well on songs such as "Yours to Discover" and "What's Left Behind."

But there's certainly more to The Sadies' sound, with bits of rockabilly, garage, surf and other genres combined with excellent songwriting and instrumental flair. Standouts include "Sunset to Dawn," with beautiful harmonies adding to the song's far-gone sadness, the country rockin' "Never Again" and the spooky, two-part "Inquisition" songs. This shows The Sadies looking for competition and finding no takers.