A more melancholy state of mind for New Zealand’s Brunettes, whose new album Structure and Cosmetics is out now in North America and the home territory. The more expressive palette of “Small Town Crew” still hints at the cutesy pop foundations of older releases—it’s always going to be difficult to downplay the undeniably twee qualities of Heather Manfield’s voice—but takes a more subtle approach from the usual bubblegum shenanigans of older favourites. More evidence is present on the band’s MySpace, where half the album is available for your perusal. “Brunettes Against Bubblegum Youth,” a live staple you might better know as “B.A.B.Y” (and if you don’t, hunt down the band’s live set from this year’s SXSW), sounds as though the vocals were recorded in an old school gymnasium—a very different feeling from the immediacy of the onstage version. “Her Hairagami Set,” the first single from the album, is also a bit less straightfoward.

But lest you think the Brunettes have taken a hard left on the new album, there are two things you should know. First, the slightly more bittersweet textures work really well, and aren’t all that different from the less upbeat moments on Mars Loves Venus. And if various songs on the album frustrate slightly—there seem to be a lot of vocal effects this time around—it’s only because both Mansfield and Jonathan Bree have such unique voices that you don’t really want to hear them under layers of reverb. Second, and more important: the Brunettes haven’t lost their sense of whimsy. “Stereo (Mono Mono)” brings back the cute interplay between the two singers for a spell, and “Obligatory Road Song” is a fun little number that’s sure to get feet shuffling when the band returns to North America for a full tour later this month.