Illustration from a flier for the Miami Serpentarium by Pete Porter, c. 1970
On their second album, released last month by Slumberland Records, NYC band the Pains of Being Pure at Heart haven't messed with their winning formula too much. Their approach to noisy pop is clearly derived from '90s shoegaze bands, but the Pains of Being Pure at Heart always keep things mainstream-ready and accessible, with the hooks up front and the guitar-effects craziness reined in at the appropriate times. This is clearly in evidence in the album's second single and opening track "Belong" - the guitars' overlapping overdrive roar and bouncy arpeggio riff play off in a way that is so obviously Smashing-Pumpkins-derived that one out of four reviews of the record today reference Siamese Dream by name. The vocals of Kip Berman carry this comparison further, reminding me of Billy Corgan circa "Disarm" in a way that a detractor of this band would probably describe as a "mewling vocal style".
Belong won me over right away, which is unusual. I usually favor albums' second halves, but the first four songs on Belong are pretty hard to argue against. The highlight is probably the charming "Heart in Your Heartbreak", although Belong's Side 2 has another favorite of mine in the soaring "Even in Dreams". The albums' one misstep is "Girl of 1,000 Dreams", which brings back the ugly guitar sound used to great effect on "Belong" but doesn't deploy it properly - the song is a muddy mess. The album's other nine tracks really shine, though, and are likely to appeal to fans of Velocity Girl, Jesus and Mary Chain, and early-'90s college-rock production touches. Check out that use of the reverb on the vocals in "Heart in Your Heartbreak" - it takes me back to 1993 every time.
"Heart in Your Heartbreak" by the Pains of Being Pure at Heart
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