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For fans that are used to the usual smooth, indie rock style of the Kooks, their newest album, “Listen,” will undoubtedly be a bit jarring.

The Kooks first made an impression with their debut album, “Inside In / Inside Out,” back in 2006. The mix of Brit-pop and classic rock was a huge hit, with singles “She Moves in Her Own Way” and “Naive” making their way onto the U.K.’s top-10 charts. The band followed up with “Konk” two years later, an album with a much slower, more mellow feel than the first one. After the relative similarity of the band’s third album, “Junk of the Heart,” The Kooks seemed to feel the need to reinvent their usual sound.

However, “Listen” is a confusing fusion of far too many musical genres. In trying to reinvent it, The Kooks seem to have gotten lost. There is almost no cohesion between songs, with each track clashing irritatingly with the others. On their own, the songs are interesting pieces. Whether it is the gospel choir of “oh yeah”s in “Around Town,” or the electronic chorus in “Dreams,” each number has its own gimmick.  Unfortunately, while the band’s past works all had the defining “Kook-y” sound woven throughout, this album seems out of place and lacking that uniting factor, relying solely on the incompatible musical tricks of each track.

While certainly maintaining their famous catchiness, The Kooks have swapped their traditional clever lyrics for echoing yells and infinite choruses. Especially exemplified in “Down,” the “let’s get a little louder” call-and-response repetition and the odd “diggy diggy down” chorus leaves listeners with only about two lines of actual lyrics and a headache.

While experimentation and drawing from different influences is never a bad thing for a band, The Kooks seem to have taken it a step too far. For most fans, the drastic change is too sudden and for newcomers, the lack of a recognizable tone is grating.  “Listen” was an attempt to positively reinvent the almost decade-old band, but the patchwork collection may have left the Kooks’ solid, if small, group of original fans confused.