It’s admirable how high-flyers Alex Kasznel (guitar, keys, vocals), Heather Alene (bass, vocals), and Andrew Gable (drums) continue to drop catchy and sensitive pop-punk tunes. The Cincinnati, Ohio trio is back with their next full-length, Flightless, featuring twelve songs loosely centered around a theme of feeling trapped, but with a way out in sight—a cathartic shout from inside the cage.

The lyrics here are as idiosyncratic (“The creases in my pillowcase // Drew a map onto my sleeping face // Faint pink lines that made the shape of Texas // Emily, you were my muse”—from The Shape of Texas) as they are intelligent (“Your files are buried deep inside my hard drive // ​​Behind my thoughts just like a watermark // And even though you’re gone I sense your presence // My brain’s the ocean and you are the shark”—from How to Kill a Ghost), sharp, profound, and tender, set to music that varies in pace and intensity. The vocals are distinctive, the riffs are tight, the drums punch hard, energetic and infectious. Existential, but still fun.

Flightless is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Air Quotes Records.

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