The songs are brief and melodic. Vocalist John Schmersal often sings in a falsetto that sounds like he’s going gaga over the song, and the lyrics often don’t makes much literal sense. In the end, songs like “Wait No Longer,” “Memory Shards,” “Kingdom Come,” “Run Around," and “These Plains” are the kind of songs that one imagined they’d be hearing back in the late-‘70s new wave movement—and often did. The longest track, the ballad “Pretend U Are Free,” nears the four-minute mark and features smooth, soothing harmonies redolent of The Beach Boys or The Beatles, circa “This Boy” and “Yes It Is”; a xylophone provides an extra sense of hijinks and cheer. The surreal pop joy of a song like “Chambermaids” sounds like a precise and slashing version of Guided by Voices, if Bob Pollard’s watery productions were replaced by a lean drum-and-guitar attack. (Pollard makes a guest appearance on “Get Along Like U.”) Schmersal (ex-Brainiac/Enon, Crooks on Tape) and Christian Beaulieu (ex-Triclops!/Anywhere) have made a debut album worth its succinct attack.