Husband-and-wife indie-pop outfit Mates of State have come far from the barebones organ-and-drums duo they started as in the late ’90s. Where Kori Gardner and Jason Hammel’s vocals used to be urgent and detached, they’re now smoother and more relaxed; they’ve also expanded their records’ instrumentation with strings, horns and a wider variety of electronics and keyboards, and dropped the signature electric organ that drove their first few releases. It’s been a natural progression — 2008′s Re-arrange Us was a collection of sugary pop songs that found the pair at their most melodic and polished — and their sixth proper LP, Mountaintops, follows the same path while adding a couple new twists.

Like any MoS release, there’s no shortage of feel-good pop: In “At Least I Have You” they sing, “Oh, it’s cold/ I know/ But it reminds me of something/ At least I have you,” and in “Total Serendipity,” it’s “Oh, you’re a pot of gold and you’re sitting at the rainbow’s edge/ Oh, there’s a marigold growing in between your toes.” But there’s also a darkness to tracks like the closer, “Mistakes” (sorta self-explanatory) and “Unless I’m Led,” which encourages, “Oh lil’ girl, pick up the pieces.”… read more »