Funny how MTV-style synth pop is sounding like roots music nowadays, nearly four decades after its heyday. The difference is that it’s possible in 2020 to make a homemade album that would have been a state-of-the-art production in 1983, which brings us to Help Society. Largely the work of Houston-born/New Orleans-based singer and keyboardist Patrick Marshall and co-writer/arranger John Hetherington, it matches the sonic sweep of an ’80s pop record with the emotionality of a homemade outburst.

True to its title, the album is about getting through a romantic breakup, but they handle the heartbreak in a musically reassuring way, with a lot of big hooks and lush arrangements. “Better” has a bit of an OMD vibe, with a synth line that circles around the voice in the chorus. “Always Running” is a danceable soul number a la Culture Club, while the heartbeat rhythm and chilly atmospheres on “Shake” recall Ultravox. But you never get the impression that they’re being cute with the musical references, only that they’ve plugged into a musical style whose inherent emotionality suits what they need to say.

It doesn’t hurt that Marshall is an expressive singer who avoids the temptation to overdo it. And like all good breakup albums, this one ends with a positive resolution: The singer doesn’t find new love on the closing “Wonder Why,” but he does get the satisfaction that his ex is now somebody else’s problem.