Stripped down but not completely stripped (like such solo acoustic highwater marks as Hitchcock's I Often Dream of Trains and Eye), Moss Elixir uses violinist Deni Bonet to great effect. Bonet colors the tunes with a chamber pop essence while adding dramatic counterpoint to Hitchcock's surreal wordplay. "Sinister but She Was Happy" kicks up a restrained joy in its arrangement. "The Devil's Radio" zeroes in on the political vitriol heard on the AM radio waves. "De Chirico Street" fêtes surrealist painter Giorgio de Chirico in the same psychedelic warpings that Hitchcock originally hatched with The Soft Boys, when he was a young Syd Barrett fan seeking the key to the universe. Since settling into a solid career as an underground cult artist, Hitchcock has let himself explore where he wants, regardless of where the hooks might fit. "Heliotrope" allows for a reflective ballad in those weeds. "Alright, Yeah" plugs in for the Byrds-like chime that R.E.M. spent its early career chasing.