On the first album with his new trio, Kula Shaker singer Crispian Mills, or Crispian D Mills as he now bills himself, distances himself from his former band's Indian trimmings. This will disappoint those who were entranced by the mysticism-laced psychedelia that made his name, but delight those who considered it a load of sitars. Only the name (Sanskrit for "life force") and the lyrics' google-eyed quality ("Wake up if you dare/What will you find there?") betray Mills's eastern leanings. Otherwise, as the title implies, 1-2-3-4 devotes itself to fairly basic melodic rock that takes a few listens to establish itself. Mills's newly minted country twang, especially obvious on the melancholy sweep of What Is It For?, takes some getting used to but is less provoking than you might think. On the dignified, wistful Don't Say the Good Times Are Over, it feels exactly right. The ballads are more immediately appealing than anonymous piledrivers like You Got My Number and Once Upon a Time in America, but taken as a whole, 1-2-3-4 is a good deal better than expected.