Together since 1989, indie-rock institution Superchunk has logged in its eighth studio album, "Here's to Shutting Up." Mac and company play the bubbly, heartfelt Muppet-rock we've come to expect, with signature 4/4 song structures still intact. They keep it interesting, trying out different genres (like country-tinged "Phone Sex") and layering in strings and keyboards.
Remnants of the band's pogo-pop past protrude through songs "Rainy Streets" and "Out on the Wing." But songs like the sad, nostalgic "The Animal Has Left Its Shell" show signs of weariness. Adding to its swan-song-sounding title, the restless "What Do You Look Forward To?" ends with Mac singing, "I'm going to ride this blanket home."
