For a band primed for great things, the Soft Pack isn't making things easy on themselves. The band changed their name, from The Muslims, just as tastemakers began to catch on and only reveal their finest attributes to those who’ll pay them more mind than just a cursory MySpace click. But beneath the lackadaisical exterior lies a band with bucketloads of heart and pure — if somewhat grudging — joy, one that transcends comparisons to stand-offish forebears Interpol or the Strokes. By tempering insistent bass lines and choppy post-punk shimmies with a wry dose of Warren Zevon-style gallows humor and a generous swirl of the sunshine surf, they've made something all their own.

But it’s when things are at their most energetic that the band really begins throwing off sparks. Standouts “C’mon,” “Answer To Yourself” and closer “Parasites” force a cocksure swagger to the hips as the band piece together a better-scrubbed response to the sneers of disheveled, cellar-dwelling cousins the Black Lips or Thee Oh Sees. They seem to suggest that, yes, here’s a new band you can pin your hopes on — if they just hold still for a minute to damn well let you.