THE first sign that Jason Pierce had come to his senses arrived on the eve of Spiritualized's gig at York Barbican Centre in March 2002.

Without warning, during his European tour, he jettisoned his horn section: an alternative case of being brassed off.

For a band leader who collects musicians like Elton John collects glasses, it was a radical decision to down-size from 12 to seven and consign the hollow, grandiose symphonies of 2001's Let It Come Down to the dustbin already accommodating Oasis's Be Here Now.

While Pierce has not wholly gone back to basics after employing a 100-piece orchestra, a 43-minute album recorded in a three-week frenzy confirms the kitchen sink has been thrown out and trashed at the scrapyard too.

Picking up the debris, Pierce has added stripped-down metal to the meditation and medication of his 1997 space-rock epic, Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space, while re-discovering his Spaceman 3 origins and dusting off his Stooges vinyl collection to boot.

Contrary to early rumour, garage rock does not dominate, but the opening noise attack of This Little Life Of Mine and the knock-out thrill of She Kissed Me (It Felt Like A Hit) and Never Goin' Back vacate outer space for somewhere far more earthy. Did anyone say the White Stripes?

Pierce still can't resist a jazz free-for-all at the album midway point, The Power And The Glory. However, those hoping he can still reach for the stars and travel beyond should be satiated by the heavenly gospel crescendo of Oh Baby, the righteous country blues of Lord Let It Rain and the wistful, lovely The Ballad Of Richie Lee.

The melancholic Lay It Down Slow is the lullaby finale, the balm to end a restless record of grace and grease that restores Pierce's sense of direction and goes directly to the heart. Spiritualized 2003 are moving and moving on.

Updated: 08:44 Thursday, September 18, 2003