This four-piece post-punk band has made the leap to indie big deal Matador after two thrilling if generally underappreciated albums on indie lesser deal In the Red. The Ponys’ guitar/bass/drums attack isn’t radically different from a thousand rock bands before them, but they are doing it better. The group finds solid riffs — listen to the infectious, bass-driven bounce of “Poser Psychotic” — and then rides them with unapologetic swagger. There’s a sharper focus here than on their last, Celebration Castle, and the addition of a bubbling organ in spots adds unexpected color. You might wish bassist Melissa Elias would sing every once in a while (as she did on Celebration Castle), but the Ponys’ visceral kick and shredded guitar whomp is a true modern-rock wonder. (“Poser Psychotic,” “Double Vision,” “Harakiri”) — Werner Trieschmann
Grade: A