The Libertines’ short-but-prolific stint set the tone for nearly every British band to follow: Arctic Monkeys, Kaiser Chiefs, The Go! Team—all picked up where Pete Doherty and Carl Barat left off.

And so did the Maccabees’ 2007 debut, Colour It In. Wary of succumbing to “second-album syndrome,” the quintet have chiseled out a more refined and darker sound on their follow-up, Wall of Arms, partially thanks to producer Markus Dravs (of Arcade Fire’s Neon Bible fame). The result sounds like a union between Arcade Fire and Joy Division—and, also, something that sounds entirely like their own.