Days of Abandon
How a group of circa-2014 Brooklyn indie popsters manage to capture a variation on the glorious Anglo pop of Prefab Sprout is one of those questions that’s come about ever since millennials became so obsessed with the sounds of the ‘80s. Yet at a new Brooklyn studio owned by their longtime associate Danny Taylor, with producer Andy Savours (My Bloody Valentine, Cloud Boat), The Pains went in a very different direction than their previous album: the Flood and Alan Moulder production *Belong*. The lighter touch here works wonders. Songs like “Eurydice,” “Masokissed,” and “Until the Sun Explodes” (recalling The Cure\'s “In-Between Days”) bounce with genuine enthusiasm even when the lyrics veer toward darker territory. The departure of original members Alex Naidus and Peggy Wang means A Sunny Day in Glasgow’s Jen Goma is given solid lead vocals on the excellent “Kelly” and “Life After Life,” where the nod is toward Belle & Sebastian, Scotland’s greatest indie export.
On the Pains of Being Pure at Heart's third album, Days of Abandon, frontman Kip Berman is a young romantic in a state of flux. Once a starry-eyed daydreamer pitching woo at anybody in earshot, Berman now sounds like a guy who's looking to reconcile his youthful idealism with the complexities and complications of post-adolescent coupling.
On the Pains of Being Pure at Heart's third album, Days of Abandon, frontman Kip Berman is a young romantic in a state of flux. Once a starry-eyed daydreamer pitching woo at anybody in earshot, Berman now sounds like a guy who's looking to reconcile his youthful idealism with the complexities and complications of post-adolescent coupling.
On its 2011 sophomore effort, Belong, The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart evolved from its lo-fi origins to provide a twee twist on fuzzy alt-rock and synth pop, successfully employing an ambitiously big, noisy sound without overwhelming the shoegazey subtleties evident in their earlier work. On the new Days Of Abandon,…
On its 2011 sophomore effort, Belong, The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart evolved from its lo-fi origins to provide a twee twist on fuzzy alt-rock and synth pop, successfully employing an ambitiously big, noisy sound without overwhelming the shoegazey subtleties evident in their earlier work. On the new Days Of Abandon,…
The Brooklyn outfit's third full-length is a gorgeously sunny paean to their indie-pop influences.
The Brooklyn outfit's third full-length is a gorgeously sunny paean to their indie-pop influences.
It’s not like the Pains of Being Pure at Heart was the only band playing shoegaze-y indie pop when the group emerged in…
It’s not like the Pains of Being Pure at Heart was the only band playing shoegaze-y indie pop when the group emerged in…
Brooklyn's Pains of Being Pure at Heart, the pop vehicle for songwriter Kip Berman and a rotating circle of musician-friends, continues to shift and contort its sound three albums deep into its discography.
Brooklyn's Pains of Being Pure at Heart, the pop vehicle for songwriter Kip Berman and a rotating circle of musician-friends, continues to shift and contort its sound three albums deep into its discography.
Album review: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - Days Of Abandon. "This is power pop at its purest…"
Album review: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - Days Of Abandon. "This is power pop at its purest…"
<p>In The Pains of Being Pure at Heart's third album, Berman forgoes bandmates and loses a certain edge, says <strong>Harriet Gibsone</strong></p>
<p>In The Pains of Being Pure at Heart's third album, Berman forgoes bandmates and loses a certain edge, says <strong>Harriet Gibsone</strong></p>