Mates of State touch on so much of what has been great in the last 50 years of pop music, all viewed through the Mates of State filter. Most of all, they have actually built their own sound. They sound like themselves. I hear palomino and it sounds like quintessential Mates of State. Sometimes I hear a new band and think 'What a Mates Of State rip-off!' They have been carving out their place in the indie rock world since the late 90s, as two people playing complex songs that sound like five people playing a simple song. That is what the great ones can do.