The follow-up to
Lost Friends
, a Top Ten-charting debut in their native Australia,
Today We're the Greatest
finds hook-driven indie pop/rock trio
Middle Kids
in an openhearted and appreciative state of mind -- but not without reservations and deep introspection. Between releases, founding members
Hannah Joy
and
Tim Fitz
got married, and the album opens with spare acoustic guitar, a poignant tone, and the words: "Hope is an underrated word that I heard when I was younger" ("Bad Neighbours"). The song's arrangement gains only strings and understated noise effects in service of a quiet, anxious prelude. However, catchy, vibrant, fully arranged tracks follow in the form of rocker "Cellophane (Brain)" and the galloping "R U 4 Me?," establishing that
intends to ruminate to the upper tiers of the theater. While the album includes a handful of cigarette lighter-friendly ballads, including the title track and the banjo-stippled "Lost in Los Angeles," touches of intimacy temper even the lushest, most exuberant entries. The rousing, clattering, and ultimately romantic "Run with You," for instance, weaves a pulsing recording of the couple's first child's 20-week sonogram into the mix. That song also features a grungy lead guitar line that eventually falls into loose counterpoint with
Joy
's soaring main melody. More rankled moments include the circular anthem "I Don't Care" ("I gotta do what I want to"), but these are outweighed by hard-won gratitude and affection on a set that above all delivers on big hooks. ~ Marcy Donelson