"Lifeline" by Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals; Virgin

Eschewing high-tech equipment and aiming for a low-key mood, adult-alternative rocker Ben Harper and his band knocked this album out in barely a week at a less-than-state-of-the-art studio in Paris.

"Lifeline" was recorded immediately after the band completed a nine-month tour, so they might have been a bit tired. But they certainly had an almost telepathic sense of unity from so much time on the road.

"Fight Outta You" and "In the Colors" are quiet, warm and intimate, but Harper heats things up a bit on the more dynamic "Needed You Tonight" and "Say You Will." Built around a delicate piano riff played by Innocent Criminal keyboardist Jason Yates, the soulful "Younger Than Today" is utterly beautiful, as is "Paris Sunrise 7," an exquisite, improvised Weissenborn guitar solo played by Harper.

There's a relaxed but confident quality to this acoustic-based record, and it's a nice change of pace for the California native, whose work has been consistently strong ever since his 1994 debut "Welcome to the Cruel World."