The cover of The Drums' latest album.

In 2009, The Drums found success with their breakthrough single “Let’s go surfing” and embarked on a year long tour across the world. This week, the Brooklyn-based band released their second album, Portamento, a musical term used to mean carrying, or moving from one point to another. The title’s supposed to mark their evolution from optimistic teenage dreamers to grown up musicians and the eleven pop songs on the album feature feel-good anthems with beautiful lyrics about lost love and heartache.  We sat down for a chat with band member Jacob Graham to discuss the themes and influences behind the new album.

ELLE: How did the three of you meet and when did you form the band?

JG: Jonny and I met when we were kids, over a love of old fashioned electronic music. We started making recordings songs under the moniker The Drums in the fall of 2008 when I convinced him to move away from the New York City for a little bit. We met Connor at the beginning of summer of 2009 when we moved back to New York to start playing concerts.

ELLE: How would you describe your new album, Portamento?

JG: It’s a pretty straightforward pop album with unconventional instrumentation sprinkled throughout. A little darker in hue than most straightforward pop albums perhaps.

ELLE: Is it very different from your first record?

JG: Our first record was more like The Drums fantasy world and this album is The Drums in a real world setting. On our first album, every song was just sort of written about a lovely idea, so each song was like a little scene from an old movie. But in the new songs the subject matter is set in the present. I think the sound of the new record is a little more fine tuned and a little less washed out than the first. The whole thing is just crisper all around.

ELLE: What are the main themes of your new songs?

JG: They deal with religion in America, and its potential negative effects on children, our typical sort of love lost thing, subtle hints at sexuality. But I don’t think anything is so blatant that anyone couldn’t relate to any given song.

ELLE: Where do you find the inspiration for your music?

JG: Just the usual places. No ancient ruins or anything like that. Relationships, interacting with people, raindrops.

ELLE: Are you excited to go back on tour?

JG: I’m not really excited to be back on the road, I’m kind of a homebody. But I’m very grateful for it. I feel very fortunate that people are still interested in my band and come out to shows. We try to do the best job of it we can, and we have a new live setup that I think is the best we’ve ever had.