The Drums

By the time frontman Jonathan Pierce yodels his first "ee-oh!" two tracks into the Drums' debut full-length, it's already clear that this New York quartet fearlessly sport their '80s Anglo-pop influences (the Smiths, New Order) like stylized pompadours. It's also clear that Pierce has a knack for funneling broad emotions into blissfully melodic and charmingly specific narratives. He frets ceaselessly about love and mortality, but the songs' twitchy, hummable effervescence seems to vanquish all the world's problems.

By Spencer Kornhaber