In Rob Sheffield’s wonderful memoir Love Is a Mix Tape, he details his ideal live band configuration: a shy, gloomy guy messing with synths or guitar in the shadows as a flashy, sexy singer lady does her thing front and center. He makes it sound romantic, pure music mixed with pure personality, and in terms of Eurythmics or Royal Trux or the Kills, it makes a lot of sense.

Handsome Furs reverses this scenario. Alexei Perry is the background synth woman while her husband, Wolf Parade frontman Dan Boeckner takes the mic for his signature understated yowling, and this is their third LP of pure, unadulterated electro pop. Since the pair started recording in 2007, indie synth pop has blown up everywhere (Passion Pit, Crystal Castles, blah blah blah), so there’s a risk that Sound Kapital might sound like everything else made with '80s these days, but Boeckner’s voice sets their sound apart. His voice could actually correspond with any genre; the straight rock of Wolf Parade is an obvious fit, but you could see him doing folk-rock, lo-fi acoustic, punk, even country. Of course, Handsome Furs’ half dance-party, half serious-statement-making vibe is a perfect match too.

There are some real winners on Sound Kapital. “Where did the future go?/Parts unknown” he sings on “Repatriated”, a pulsating, ear-filling anthem with surprising amounts of soul. “Bury Me Standing” employs synths that would sound cheesy if handled by the wrong musician, but Perry is a judicious keyboard wizard. The lyrics are often questions, focused on economic and vaguely political matters along with personal ones. “They’re an army of bees/They’ve got everything they need/But what about us?” Boeckner asks on “What About Us”, a populist track that puts the K in Kapital. “Cheap Music” is wonderfully punkish – if you so desire, dancing Breakfast Club-style to this song would be very possible. And “No Feelings” combines guitar buzz with handclaps for an epic closer: Arcade Fire meets early-‘90s U2, a surefire sing-a-long.

This is right on par with the Furs’ last release,Face Capital, and maybe even slightly better. It’s pleasurable without producing guilt, with serious spirit and the kind of musical intermingling that usually comes from married bandmates. In other words, a must-listen.

Track list:

1. When I Get Back
2. Damage
3. Bury Me Standing
4. Memories of the Future
5. Serve the People
6. What About Us
7. Repatriated
8. Cheap Music
9. No Feelings