Pains of Being Pure At Heart:Belong

7.9/10 dropps

After a fantastically infectious debut, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart return with Belong, a sure testament of their ability to write and play the most saccharine, heavenly dream pop in today’s indie music scene. Their self-titled debut certainly put them on the map, combining catchy hooks, reverb-soaked guitars, dreamy vocals and uplifting lyrical content. Belong has the band melting our hearts again, this time with a more refined take on their sound; unfortunately, the band didn’t do much in the way of changing their sound. Don’t get me wrong, the record is great and the band is talented, but they certainly didn’t evolve nearly as much as speculation would have hoped.

Opening title track “Belong” starts off with twinkly riffs and a pleasant wall of distortion, something that is certainly atypical for the band. The song is one of the more refreshing ones on the album, confirming that the band hasn’t lost their ability to write sublime indie tunes. The constant switching between clean guitar playing and heavy distortion is definitely a welcome addition, and gives the song a certain roughness – something like a cloud made out of sandpaper. The track’s first listen floors and excites, prepping listeners for the rest of the record; however, once the following track, “Heavens Gonna Happen Now” kicks in, hopes might fade a little. The sounds are familiar, but not in a way that’s fully describable. The lead guitar part combined with the resonating chords added a brilliant element to the song, but it was still all too familiar. In actuality, the song follows the pattern of the band’s debut. “Belong” is a stark increase in technique and confidence levels, but not too much in the way of musical growth and evolution. Surely it’s not always fair to ask a band to change up their sound with every release, but it also can’t remain exactly the same.

“Heart In Your Heartbreak” opens up with a prominent punk rock bass line and minimal guitar playing, and the band’s vocal delivery in the track stays true to their ability to carry a truly sentimental sensation throughout the entirety of their records. Sweet, delicate, almost whispered vocals plead “and no matter what you pray, it’s never going to take the pain away” after a fantastic instrumental break that unwillingly causes your body to rock back and forth in that typical indie dance you see in music videos and live recordings nowadays. The band does offer a couple changes with “Belong,” giving us a slower, more touching ballad in the song “Even In Dreams.” It’s definitely the kind of song you’d see someone crying to, what with the powerful drums and the emerging and reemerging fuzzed-out guitar chords that cut through you like icicles. “My Terrible Friend” evokes prominent images of The Cure and Robert Smith, combining rapid drumming and warm synthesizers that seem like something right out of Wish. The closing song “Strange” is one of the best in the band’s catalogue. It’s lush the whole way through, saturated with walls and walls of guitar that push constantly forward like a flock of birds or a pack of dogs, until ultimately fade out to close the record.

Belong is definitely a more powerful release than the band’s debut. They don’t skimp on the emotion, despite drenching it in the lovely shroud of dream pop that they are so skilled at performing. My only wish (and I’ll keep saying it) is that the band would have done more to their sound, because their talent is truly enjoyable. Belong is in no way a disappointment. It’s quite the opposite. It’s a band continuing to hone their craft, delivering great indie tunes in a music scene where it’s easy to blow up without doing much work at all. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart are most definitely true to their music, and ultimately that is what’s most important. Everyone should give this record a listen; there are elements included to satisfy a wide range of listeners. That’s the way this band works. There could be a sentiment long lost inside of yourself that one of these songs will awaken, whether it be the anguished memories of a former girlfriend for whom bled your heart out, or the memories you shared with a close friend that became separated from you because of that cruel enemy we have come to know as distance. As the songs find their way into your heart, they grow on you, becoming a part of you as you listen, and that is the band’s strong suit.

-Wilson De Gouveia