Let there be no mistake, this Brooklyn band has come into their own on their fourth full-length studio release, Secrets are Sinister. While the lineup and label representation may have shifted over the years, original members Steve Shiltz and Shannon Ferguson have continued to experiment with the band’s sound and identity. On their latest effort, Longwave has once again enlisted the talents of Peter Katis (Interpol, The National, Spoon), among other big time producers, to create an ambitious, self-assured and prodigious album, and without a doubt, they have done just that.

Thunderous garage rock, gut-twisting pop lyrics, post-punk influence, and Sigur Ros-style cries for help rise from the ashes of many of the songs on Secrets Are Sinister. “Sirens in the Deep Sea,” the opening track, starts out pretty heavy, but quickly lightens with the introduction of Shiltz’s voice, an ethereal messenger arriving to meet us in a fierce heavy metal landscape. Lyrics like “I’ve been trying to reach you / I’ve been trying to get through. / You’re the only one that can / You are,” appeal to all of my favorite emo-indulgent tendencies. “Satellites” is an easy-going, but at times needy tune that begs to be listened to with dreamy lyrics pierced with screeching guitars and buoyed by a driving bass.

“Life is Wrong” is a super-sized and noisy cri de coer for the lost and lonely, produced by industry heavyweight Dave Friedman (The Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev). It just doesn’t get any bigger than this song and I love feeling adrift inside of it. Another favorite is “Eyes like Headlights,” a dirty, self-righteous jam heavy on the distortion about a fallen lover who finds a way out of the dark. And I would be remiss if I did not mention “No I Don’t Dare” because it’s quite possibly the greatest track on what is a really great album. Shiltz chants: “I am not there / No I don’t dare” over “Edge-style” guitar gusto and a kind of cosmic wailing that is indistinguishable from some of the guitars on the record in true shoe-gazing glory.