Player Hater has come in the from cold. What began as the stripped down four-track solo project from Jeff Gomez, a novelist and songwriter from Southern California who now lives in Manhattan, now sounds like a proper band. Player Hater’s latest CD, Picking You Up Just to Put You Down, features drums, bass, and--on two tracks--harmonica. The early, ragged influences such as Sentridoh and Portastatic have been replaced by the classically lush sound of alternative songwriters and bands like Lou Reed, Luna, and Elliot Smith. The tape hiss may be gone, but the songs remain the same: acoustic and electric guitars wrapped around lyrics that mostly recall tortured relationships (if Arab Strap had a sense of humor, Player Hater might be what they would sound like).