Photo: Ben Semisch

Lo-fi-loving indie rockers Pretty & Nice are returning to their D.I.Y. roots, after a short stint on Hardly Art, by self-releasing their new EP, Us You All We, next month. It contains four upbeat, quirky speaker thwappers that split the difference between the Shins and Of Montreal, not to mention the fact some songs contain Hive-approved lyrics like, “All alone, I sang a song for Billy Joel,” as on “Hyena.”

One standout is “Capsules,” which stops and starts with herky-jerky panache and boasts wooshy, bendy melodic lines that seamlessly blend guitar into keyboards as they swirl. While the vocal line and melodic lines appear to be pretty predictable for about half of the song, the quartet makes use of its lineup for the rest of the track by anteing up their new-wave melody-making skills with harmonies, horn sounds and ad-hoc wooo’s without any predictable form.

It’s worth noting, too, that the group has promised to donate 10 percent of sales of their record to Charity: Water, a nonprofit organization that provides clean drinking water for developing countries. It’s a move that continues to earn them their name.

Us You All We comes out November 6.