A stunning return to form, Dreamy reprises the dark aggression of the preceding Black Candy, but brings to the table a significantly stronger and more assured collection of songs. Measuring Calvin Johnson’s increasingly menacing lead turns with Heather Lewis’ more wistful contributions, the album strikes a careful balance between maturity and naïveté; for all of their ragged minimalism, tracks like “Collide,” “Revolution Come and Gone,” and “Me Untamed” are remarkably sophisticated and assured. And in addition to the newfound sexiness of cuts like “Nancy Sin” and “Red Head Walking,” there’s also a renewed sense of emotional urgency — Heather’s beguiling “Fortune Cookie Prize” is one of the group’s most buoyant love songs, while the mournful “Cry for a Shadow” exposes the tenderness beneath Calvin’s tough-guy veneer. – Jason Ankeny