Paul McCartney's latest collaboration with Youth-- under their Fireman banner-- is probably the best McCartney project in, oh, three decades or so. It's first-class McCartney, on par with terrific albums like Ram, and it arrives on Tuesday. My review is up here.

Tom Erlewine gives it 4.5 stars-- and a checkmark!-- and calls it Sir Paul's best work in 20 years. I'd say it's more like 30, but that's a small quibble. Point is, this record is flat-out tremendous.

I gave a listen to all the myspace tracks, and it did nothing to me (which isn't saying a lot). I just observe that McCartney is doing something else, indeed.

Well, I may be the only person here who thinks this album is a knockout-- but I know I'm not totally alone. Pitchfork-- much as I might agree with the criticisms leveled against them in the Anathallo thread-- really nails it when they say that this is the first McCartney album in a long time... perhaps the only one EVER... that can actually compare to The Beatles' best albums in terms of its invention, its creative restlessness, and its genuine unpredictability.

I really love this album. I love how it starts off with a howling, Zeppelin-esque blues-rock stomper, then morphs into a low-key, homespun acoustic ballad, then climbs to the top of the mountain for a moment of pure U2 euphoria and bombast, eventually winding its way through folk songs and blues rockers and weird avant-jazz pieces, all of it sounding like it's following its own strange sense of logic. I love how it strikes such a deft balance between the traditional and the truly cutting-edge. I love how Paul cracks jokes, and makes not-so-veiled (and sometimes downright threatening) allusions to his divorce. And I love how he tries so hard to mask his voice, but can't hide the fact that he sounds more youthful and energetic than he has in decades.

I know there's some skepticism around these parts regarding Paul's solo albums, and while I understand and maybe even agree with it, I hope it doesn't stop anyone from checking out this record, which is absolutely one of the best of the year.

Great NYT review.

I'm digging it.

As a Beatles fanatic I'll give Macca a chance any day.