The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (album)

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
Studio album by The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
Released February 3, 2009
Recorded Summer 2008
Genre Indie pop, noise pop, shoegaze
Length 34:58
Label Slumberland (US), Fortuna Pop! (UK)
Producer The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart chronology
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (EP)
(2007)		 The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
(2009)		 Higher Than the Stars (EP)
(2009)

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart is the self-titled debut album by the New York indie pop band The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, released on February 3, 2009. The album was recorded at Honeyland Studios in Brooklyn, New York, and was mixed by Archie Moore. The album was released to generally warm critical reception. First pressing of vinyl is black with a limited edition in white. Second pressing of the vinyl is clear. The third pressing is black & white swirl.

Musical style

The album's sound has been compared to My Bloody Valentine, Ride, The Field Mice and The Jesus and Mary Chain.[1][2]

Track listing

No. Title Length
1. "Contender"   2:40
2. "Come Saturday"   3:17
3. "Young Adult Friction"   4:07
4. "This Love Is Fucking Right!"   3:15
5. "The Tenure Itch"   3:45
6. "Stay Alive"   4:56
7. "Everything with You"   2:59
8. "A Teenager in Love"   3:24
9. "Hey Paul"   2:03
10. "Gentle Sons"   4:32

Personnel

The following people contributed to The Pains of Being Pure at Heart:[3]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic link
The A.V Club(A-) link
The Guardian link
NME(8/10) link
No Ripcord link
Pitchfork Media(8.4/10) link
Robert Christgau(A-) link
Rolling Stone link

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart has received generally positive reviews. On the review aggregate site Metacritic, the album currently has a 76 out of 100, indicating "Generally favorable reviews."[4]

NME's Nathaniel Cramp called the album "Pure indie-pop to hold close to your heart."[5] Ian Cohen of Pitchfork Media gave the album a "Best New Music" designation, writing: "The Pains of Being Pure at Heart simply made a slyly confident debut that mixes sparkling melodies with an undercurrent of sad bastard mopery, and you're just being a dick if you think the past has some kind of patent on that. That's just the way good pop music works."[6] Robert Christgau also praised the album, writing "Not only do they have a sound, they have tunes, and the words bring both home. One day it will please them to remember even this."[7] Allmusic's Tim Sindra was a little less positive, but still enjoyed the album, writing "A little more variation from song to song, a little more of their own sound, or another song or two as compelling as the best stuff here and the POBPAH's debut would have been classic. Settling for impressive is fair enough and good enough for fans of loud, fuzzy, and heartfelt indie noise pop."[1]

In a more mixed review Popmatters' Matthew Fiander criticized the second half of the album, writing "The melodies sound a little too simple, the vocals almost anemic, and the songs take on a dreary-afternoon trudge." Fiander also criticized the album for its lack of originality.[8] In another mixed review, The Guardian's Maddy Costa wrote that "Anyone convinced that the C86 bands represent a nadir of tweeness will hate it - while anyone who thinks that Britpop and dance music ruined indie will fall hopelessly in love."[9]

Pitchfork Media ranked the album #19 on the website's list of The Top 50 Albums of 2009.[10] In addition, the same website ranked the song "Young Adult Friction" #30 on their list of The Top 100 Tracks of 2009.[11]

Singles

  1. "Everything with You"
  2. "The Pains of Being Pure at Heart"
  1. "Young Adult Friction"
  2. "Ramona"
  1. "Come Saturday"
  2. "Side Ponytail"

Charts

Chart (2009) Peak
position
US Top Heatseekers 9[12]
US Independent Albums 37[12]

References

  1. 1 2 Sendra, Tim. allmusic ((( The Pains of Being Pure at Heart > Overview ))). Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  2. ↑ Reviews: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Rolling Stone. 1 April 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  3. ↑ The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Credits. Allmusic. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  4. ↑ Critic Reviews for The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Metacritic. Retrieved 19 June 2011
  5. ↑ Album Review: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart. NME. 23 February 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2011
  6. ↑ Cohen, Ian. Album Reviews: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Pitchfork Media. 6 February 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2011
  7. ↑ Christgau, Robert. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Consumer Guide. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
  8. ↑ Fiander, Matthew. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Popmatters. 4 February 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2011
  9. ↑ Costa, Maddy. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. The Guardian. 5 February 2009. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
  10. ↑ Pitchfork Staff. The Top 50 Albums of 2009. Pitchfork Media. 17 December 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2011
  11. ↑ Pitchfork Staff. The Top 100 Tracks of 2009. Pitchfork Media. 14 December 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2011
  12. 1 2 The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Charts & Awards. Allmusic. Retrieved 19 June 2011
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