Eux Autres is made up of Portland-based siblings Nicholas and Heather Larimer, and Cold City is their second album, out on Happy Happy Birthday To Me Records. With ten tracks coming in at just over half an hour, the name of the game here is punchy pop songs (with a few slow ones thrown in to mix it up a bit).

The album opens with one of the strongest tracks, The Deadball Era. Somewhat strangely for an American band with a French-Canadian name, it's a song about football (sorry, soccer), a subject that is revisited later on. It starts with a simple drumbeat that's very reminiscent of Beat Happening, but by the time the chorus kicks in it's clear that Eux Autres are a more polished-sounding outfit than their Northwestern neighbours. Vocals flit effortlessly between Nicholas and Heather, a pattern that is repeated throughout the album, and the whole thing sounds immensely summery for a record released in the dead of winter. It's a joyous opening to the album, and a good marker of what's to come - jangly (verging on angular) guitars, sweet melodies and slightly unusual subject matter. The song reaches a peak when Heather sings, "I'm coming home/I'm coming home/I'm always coming home unless I'm leaving home/No-one to say goodnight to". The themes of travelling, touring and the pull of the road reappear throughout the album.

The second song is mostly sung by Heather and is a fairly pleasant, if hard to decipher, ode to the eponymous Molly, whomever she may be. The band's debut, Hell is Eux Autres, featured several songs sung in French but this time around only one, Gratte-Ciel, has that distinction. I can't claim to have any idea what's it's about, but it does sound very authentically French with a 60s vibe in places. Heather's voice is sweet but she pounds the drums hard, and this song is full of attitude.

Fourth song, When I'm Up, is the most dancefloor/radio-friendly on show here. With more shared vocals and jangly guitars, it's probably the high point of the album. The tempo slows somewhat with the fifth song, Anne Boleyn. It's nice enough with good harmonies and a bit of violin thrown in for good measure, but it's debatable whether Nicholas' voice is good enough to carry a slow, measured song like this.

Sixth song, The Town That Never Was, is probably the most angular-sounding of the album and sounds almost out of place here with its eerie feel. The City All To Himself starts with a very Beat Happening-esque guitar, and it launches into another upbeat back-and-forth between brother and sister. With its handclaps and harmonies, it's definitely one of the best songs here. It ends with the pair singing, "I'm bits and pieces/And bits and pieces don't equal the whole" over and over; one of the album's most touching, bittersweet moments.

Graceful Exit is a mournful number sung by Heather, sounding like Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley (which is no bad thing in my book). It's a pleasant enough listen, but feels like something of a downer given the positive feel of the rest of the album. Collision Theory sees a return of the football theme with the lines, "This is a collision/We're never surviving this fall/It's lower division/Lower division/Lower division for all". It edges close to 'nice but nothing special' territory, but it's far from bad. Park Bench Vacation is the last and longest song, but also one of the more upbeat. The theme is travel once again, and it does a good job of capturing the giddy excitement of being on the road.

The best songs on Cold City all tend to have the same elements - both band members singing together or in turn, quicker tempo and poppier sound. When the pace slows the album becomes a bit less enjoyable, although never a chore.
You'll notice that I've used the word 'pleasant' to describe several of the songs, which may seem like damning them with faint praise. That's how I could best sum up the album though - pleasant, in places brilliant, enjoyable more or less throughout, but not life-changing. If you like summery-sounding records, harmonies and Francophile pop sensibilities with a bit of an edge, you could do far worse than this.

Eux Autres - When I'm Up

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