Wisely then, Built on Squares, Starlight Mints' recently released sophomore album, wanders into terra more incognita. A little funkier, a little tougher and a little slicker than its predecessor, Squares better highlights Vest's talent for synapse-seizing vocal hooks. Likewise--and yet paradoxically--the new album's more eclectic arrangements serve to tighten the band's songs into super-efficient pop delivery systems. Who knew that Casiotone keyboards, pedal steel and mariachi trumpets could put the power in the pop? It's a trick Starlight Mints have figured out for themselves--and live, they play with the joyful swagger of a band that's earned its own sound.