The subtitle of WORKING FOR THE MAN is a bit misleading, since Tindersticks are not a band that turns out hits, unless, of course, by "hits," you would infer "dark, delicate songs of love and despair." However, the brooding British chamber-pop group has been remarkably consistent in its finely tuned, yet surprisingly varied, aesthetic, a point driven home by this concise 11-track survey of the ensemble's 1990s output. The collection ranges from chiming, Velvet Underground-inspired early singles ("Marbles," "Patchwork") to lush, cinematic melancholia ("Travelling Light," "Tiny Tears") to smooth, pleading neo-R&B ("Can We Start Again?," "I Know That Loving"). Throughout the stylistic shifts, the deep, unmistakable voice of singer Stuart Staples is front and center, leading listeners on with seemingly effortless charisma. Longtime Tindersticks fans will be intimately familiar with most of the material on WORKING FOR THE MAN, but for the uninitiated, this compilation is an ideal introduction to the group.