All systems Jo-anna.
Was there a meeting in indie-land where it was decided that singing with a wavering voice like Kermit the Frog was the new in-thing and the sound to be desired? That's not to have a go at this type of singing but its annoying to miss out on meetings and suchlike.
Gregory Counsell who provides vocals (and bass duties) for The Maple State does indeed have that cracked quality to his vocal delivery and if there is the feeling of familiarity in the music of the band, it can also be viewed that on their debut 7", they've managed to come up with a sound that is currently in vogue and they probably do it better than some major acts.
'Joanna' conjures up the music of Bloc Party with the drum riffs powering on and the repeated vocal refrain of "Ask me, ask me, ask me" screams out "compare us to The Smiths please." Duly noted and stated, the references that can be found in the song have a few more variations but its pleasant enough as it is, without ever breaking the originality bank.
'Wood and Rain' is a little more direct and upbeat but its cut from the same cloth as the previous track and compliments 'Joanna' nicely. The lead guitar is more prominent at times but the hushed and pained vocals carry through as before.
As an aside, when getting asked to review a new band, its quite handy to check them out online to find some more info and on the bands Wikipedia page theres a curious mention of their merchandise guy and the fact that he appears to be handsome and does well with the ladies. No doubt the curse of self-input strikes Wikipedia yet again and just maybe the merchandise guy updated their page himself. He may be handsome ladies but if he has to stoop to such low self-promotion then he probably has a small personality with penis size to match. If it's a genuine insert, then roll up ladies, he sounds like a catch and you can probably get a discount on t-shirts.
Don't let that distract you from the band in hand though, it's a competent indie level opener which is more pleasant than is required to gain interest.