I've followed TC for some time and have several of their discs. I've always liked their atmospheric, eclectic approach but got put off by the overly rudimentary, "paint by numbers" approach of much of their earlier material. TC sometimes lacked sonic depth and it was often all too obvious where electronic drum tracks were being used. Also, TC's hard-left stance gets a bit doctrinaire.All of this changes with Cosmic Game. Continuing the trend first etablished with "Richest Man in Babylon," the overall level of musicianship is much stronger, the grooves are more convincing, the drum parts much livelier, and the use of reverb, delay, and other effects is both more discreet and more musical. The whole package creates, for me, far and away their best and most compulsively listenable disc.Certainly, to start with, this is their best dub album, with the lovely lilting chords of Track 6, "Amerimaca," poised against the commentary of how the Bush administration has perverted the ideal of American liberty and optimism. Track 13 is another dub gem. TC have thoroughly mastered the timing and reverb-soaked fade-outs typical of dub, but also make them more musical somehow than many other dub artists. In some cases they remind me of Bill Laswell, while being a little more accessible. (The political pretensions are similar as well.)Tracks 5, 11, 12 and 14 may be the best groove tracks TC have ever written. All are smooth, atmospheric and perfect for late-night moonlit drives across rural highways. Track 5 particularly makes admirable use of Indian vocals and sampled sitar, and creates what I think is the best Indian-oriented tune (out of many) they've done. As I see it, by track 4 this disc hits cruising altitude and stays there the rest of the way. (I'm not a big fan of Perry Farrell, so his "revolutionary" rant on Track 3 did nothing for thsi reviewer.)The CD wraps up with a touching example of how TC can sensitively back a female vocalist, in this case Lou Lou with "the Time We Lost Our Way," with its staggering, almost drunken rhythm and deceptively simple guitar figure.Others compare this disc to their earlier work; this is valid but I feel this disc is musically their strongest. It shows growth in every direction from better, warmer instrumentation to better use of effects and an overall warmer, less mechanistic sound.