Fun.

Something of a supergroup for the God-fearing Hot Topic set, the curiously punctuated Fun. combines the talents of ex-Format leader Nate Ruess, multi-instrumentalist Andrew Dost (late of orchestral Michigan folk collective Anathallo), and Steel Train frontman Jack Antonoff. On its 2009 debut, Aim And Ignite, Fun. married Ruess and Antonoff’s pop sensibilities to Dost’s theatrical streak, reflecting shades of Queen and Electric Light Orchestra at their most ambitious. The new album, Some Nights, loses the more natural elements in favor of drum machines and keyboards. Singer Janelle Monáe’s guest vocals give a soulful underpinning to the epic, chugging “We Are Young,” the album’s breakout single. Not all of the changes work, and though the sound of Some Nights is less organic than Aim And Ignite, it’s still just as hook-heavy as its predecessor.

Updated 03/29/2012