record review: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Belong

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart have, since their inception, been a band that channels older music really well and efficiently, warming your cold hipster heart with comforting shoegaze sounds of the My Bloody Valentine variety. On their sophomore effort, the NY band continues with this trend, although they look to slightly different places for inspiration. I hear more upbeat post-punk music all over Belong, and The Cure being their focal point. Robert Smith could have written “My Terrible Friend” or “Heaven’s Gonna Happen Now”, which features the most memorable guitar solo I’ve ever heard from TPoBPaH. The song, which is clearly the strongest on the album, winds round and round, like two young lovers on a merry go round. “Heart in Your Heartbreak” is driven by a delightfully cheesy 80’s guitar line while “Anne with an E” is wistfully delicate and slightly reminiscent of Simon & Garfunkel. The band dips into more modern sounds with “Girl of 1000 Dreams”, a song vying to be the indie version of Blink 182 and the final two tracks, which are softspoken and begging to be beat up in a way that I used to think were reserved for Keane.

All in all, although it's neither groundbreaking nor absolutely vital, it's a decent (albeit often times too sweet) album, definitely worth a listen or two.

3.6/5

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Heaven's Gonna Happen Now

TPoBPaH will play a free in-store gig at Amoeba San Francisco on April 19th at 6:30 PM.

a couch for luxury and damned incest

I was listening to The Pains of Being Pure at Heart earlier today and, now, as I sift through my external harddrive, looking at old school assignments, I was brought back to TPOBPaH

"In fact, perhaps this is the pure and perfect incest: the brother realizing that the sister’s virginity must be destroyed in order to have existed at all, taking that virginity in the person of the brother in law, the man whom he would be if he could become, metamorphose into, the lover, the husband, by whom he would be despoiled, choose for the despoiler, if he could become, metamorphose into the sister, the mistress, the bride."
-Absalom, Absalom!
[one of my favourite quotes from one of the greatest books ever written, thankyouverymuch. I love the paper I wrote on this quote. it's brilliant, if I do say so myself.]

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - This Love is Fucking Right [mp3]

Band of the Week + record review: The Pains of Being Pure At Heart

this much buzzed about band from NY answer that question which everyone's pondered at least at one point in their lives:

can pop music be melancholy?

I mean, we have The Smiths, but they always seemed like a class of their own.

but, the answer to the question is indubitably, unequivocally, yes.

there's a good reason that everyone's talking about this band. I just wish that Voxtrot would have had this much attention, they make really similar music.

TPOBPAH's debut album is really, really, really fantastic. like all great debuts, they sound completely out of place in the modern age of music. anachronistic, if you will. TPOBPAH sound like a fantastic mesh of The Smiths, (early) Jimmy Eat World and The Cure.

good music is music that stands out. music that makes you stop, double back and think "whoa, nice one, guys". catches you off guard with guitar riffs that evoke happy memories of carefree adolescence ("everything with you"). makes you grin with sweet lyrics about intimate experiences that we all can relate to ("young adult friction")

the self titled album does all of these things.

I really, really dig it.

I probably wouldn't have bothered to get the record so soon but a friend of mine saw them open up for Deerhunter and told me that it was well worth listening to. I'm really quite glad that I took his advice.

the thing is nearly flawless, even though it's awkward at times. perfect in its very imperfection.

highly recommended for everyone: teenagers trying to figure things out for the first time and adults who still have no idea what the hell life's about. listening to the record somehow manages to make everything seem simultaneously relative and completely different.

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Young Adult Friction [mp3]
(favourite track)

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Gentle Sons [mp3]
(closing track)

lyrics

MYSPACE (they're on a massive tour. check for a city near you)

the record dropped three days ago. go forth to your local record shop and pick it up! it's sure to be one of your best purchases of the year.

THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART ON AMAZON

Deerhunter to play FREE all ages SECRET SHOW on WEDNESDAY night

with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart at RICKSHAW STOP in San Francisco (it's on Fell and Van Ness). great venue.

it's first come, first served

I'll be at GAMH seeing Stephen Malkmus but if you go, let me know how it went!