"Glitterbug" is the Wombats' third studio album. (@hmvdigital / Twitter)

With their third album, "Glitterbug" (out now on Bright Antenna Records in the U.S.), Matthew Murphy and company make a mature push for that recognition, sculpting their already-triumphant sound into a radio-friendly explosion of pop, underneath which their characteristic darkness and cynicism still lurks.

On previous albums, the Wombats put their punk roots on full display, with songs like “Let’s Dance to Joy Division” bringing a guitar-and-bass flair to Murphy’s sophisticated lyricism, oftentimes prioritizing a tune’s meaning before its melody, cramming verses detailing debauchery and dance into four-minute-plus runtimes.

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But on "Glitterbug," the band lets the choruses breathe, vocal loops and piano arpeggios sliding healthily along more synthetic, but energetic drum beats. With four years having passed since their last album, 2011’s "This Modern Glitch," it was a valid concern that the Wombats may fail to catch up to the changing sound of their genre, but "Glitterbug" proves any naysayers wrong right off the bat.

Album opener “Emoticons” bemoans digital-age romance as Murphy sings “And all these emoticons and words / Try to make it better but they only make it worse” over a soaring track produced by Mark Crew (best known for his work with Bastille), in a knowing wink to the habits of the Wombats’ mostly-female, mostly-teenaged fanbase. 

“Emoticons” is an enjoyable enough song, but it merely acts as an introduction to the meat of "Glitterbug," which sees the usually-staid Wombats taking adventurous risks in melody and composition. The undeniably catchy “Headspace” is a rollicking disco ode to an inescapable lover, with Murphy crooning “I'm acting my age here and I'm growing up too fast / and streets paved with gold / I want my money back” over a burbling beat that wouldn’t sound out of place in a 1980s roller rink.

Lighthearted “Pink Lemonade” is the most daring step out of their usual lane for the Wombats, its fantastic chorus backed by an orchestra of synth blips that brings to mind mid-2000s pop acts like Owl City and the Postal Service. By bringing in this array of influences outside their rock arena, the Wombats shed new light on Murphy’s lovelorn words. And album standout “Your Body Is A Weapon,” though released as a radio single back in 2013, has not lost any of its shine, with its metaphorical concept balancing on that perfect edge of genius and cheesy that the Wombats have so expertly mastered. 

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Some may claim that the Wombats, with their move towards a more indie-pop sound, have lost something essential—but when frontman Murphy is still crafting lyrics as clever as “I dream of space and time and wake up in 2D” (from “This Is Not A Party”) then it’s hard to make a case for utter soullessness. Yes, the tracks may be more polished and sync-friendly, but the Wombats’ underlying honestly and love of a good old-fashioned party shines through regardless, endearing both old fans and new listeners to the band’s particular brand of risk-taking.

"Glitterbug" is a step forward for the Wombats that, while not doing anything particularly innovative, manages to effortlessly and invitingly capture the zeitgeist of 2015’s alternative sound. “Just give me a try,” sings Murphy on “Give Me A Try,” and it is an exhortation not just to the American lover that the album was mainly written about but to the rest of the world as well. The Wombats have been ready for their moment for years, and if Glitterbug’s expertly-crafted string of hits have anything to say about it, that moment is about to come on strong. 

Reach Staff Reporter Allegra Rosenberg here.