The Whigs, an Athens, Georgia-based trio, take their power pop to the Creepy Crawl’s stage on Valentine’s Day (Thursday.)

Their new album, “Mission Control,” came out a few weeks back, following up their acclaimed 2005 self-release, “Give ‘Em All A Big Fat Lip.”

The record was recorded in the legendary Hollywood Sunset Sound Studios last July with the help of producer Rob Schnapf (Elliott Smith, Beck, Guided By Voices.)

Though the album doesn’t offer a singular confection like “Technology,” the mix of garage rock, indie pop and Southern twang is more balanced overall than their debut.

“Like a Vibration” gets things started off on a tight and winning note and the intensity doesn’t let up on any of the the 11 tracks. “Right Hand on My Heart” is a keeper, a down tempo, Spoon-like drum and vocal tune.

I caught up with drummer Julian Dorio prior to the band’s appearance on David Letterman a few weeks ago (see video below.) They’ll play Late Night With Conan O’Brien on Wednesday, Feb. 20.

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RC: How long have you been playing together?

JD: About five years now. We started in college and we’ve only been doing this full time over the last few years, after we self released our first album. During college, we toured as much as humanely possible while being in classes. This has been a great experience. I’m happy that I was able to finish school and now the hope is to do this full time as a professional.

RC: What was it like recording at the Sunset Sound studio?

JD: It was awesome. It was the polar opposite of what we experienced the first time around, when we recorded in a big Southern mansion/frat house in Athens. That was a lot of fun, but we had no money. This time, it was just an amazing opportunity. Countless huge records have been made there. You walk in and you realize whose been in there and what they recorded. Rob Schnapf and Doug Boehm helped us immensely — I didn’t really know how to run anything there. We were there for about six weeks total for whole project. Then we worked at a studio down the street called the Sound Factory.

RC: Does the new album differ in style or production value?

JD: Definitely in the production value. The sonic quality is probably as different as the rooms we recorded in. Most people will notice the higher fidelity recording – it really jumps off the record. As for the music style and songwriting, there are differences, it’s maybe more mature in some places. We try to keep it fairly diverse.

RC: Are you looking forward to playing Letterman?

JD: Yeah, that’s a dream come true for sure. It hasn’t really registered yet. I’m sure it will hit me harder when I’m standing next to Paul Shaffer.

The Whigs with Waxfang and Tulsa

Thursday at the Creepy Crawl

Doors 7 pm, $10

www.myspace.com/thewhigs

www.thewhigs.com

The Whigs on the Late Show with David Letterman: