Pony’s debut record from a couple of years ago, TV Baby, was a great helping of bubblegum fun, but after a few spins I moved on. This sophomore record – while still carved from the same giant marshmallow mountain – has much more to it. As a result, Velveteen has stayed in my rotation since May. The lyrics are consistently more interesting than one might expect for sugar pop-rock (‘break my spine just to prove I have one’; ‘look at me, I’m trying, bit my tongue while I was lying’). And there’s also much greater variety in the music than there was on album #1. Opener (and standout track) ‘Très Jolie’ is a representative punky joy, but there are also mid-tempo diversions (‘Haunted House’; ‘Haircut’) and some genuine eccentricity (see ‘French Class’). Overall, I expected Velveteen to be a fun dalliance for a day or two, but instead it has found its way here, onto the hallowed turf of The List.