It seems everyone’s been falling in love with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart of late. The band’s gloriously pure pop songs carry a kind of blissful optimism, even when the lyrics hint at a more melancholic undercurrent.
The Pains’ lead singer Kip tells me the band all share an affection for noisy pop music. “We were friends before we started the band” he recalls. “We were all pretty amateur to begin with-Alex had never played bass before- but we just enjoyed making music together.”
The band’s first gig was at a Brooklyn warehouse for keyboard player Peggy’s birthday party, alongside fellow New Yorkers Titus Andronicus and The Manhattan Love Suicides. “Our aim was to get good enough at our instruments to play at the party” says Kip. “We ended up playing and had a lot of fun!” As for the origins of their name, it came from the title of an unpublished children’s story written by a friend of Kip.
In the beginning the band only had three members and played with a drum machine. “It was a bit of a problem because we could only program the drum machine to play one beat!”Kip remembers. “It got a little bit repetitive after a while, things definitely improved when we got Kurt to drum for us! “ The Pains self-released their first EP as a three-piece in 2007 before Kurt came onboard for their self-titled debut, which was recorded in Brooklyn. The album was released on renowned American indie label Slumberland in February and has received a warm reception, drawing comparisons with bands like The Field Mice and My Bloody Valentine.
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart- 'Everything With You'
While The Pains hail from New York, the band has a very strong appreciation for Glasgow’s musical heritage. “The music coming out of Glasgow has been incredibly influential for us” he says. “We all love bands like Aztec Camera, The Pastels, The Jesus and Mary Chain. We love Teenage Fanclub as well, they’re an incredible band for just playing great melodic pop music.”
Indeed, the band’s devotion is such that the last time they were in Glasgow they made a pilgrimage down to Mono “to shake Stephen Pastel’s hand”. Kip continues to name check other Glaswegian favorites, as he gushes over the likes of Camera Obscura, Belle and Sebastian and Wake The President. “The thing that amazes me about Glasgow is how many great bands there are for its size” Kip says. “I always say that if we formed in Glasgow we would be maybe the 27th best band there!”
While Kip is passionate about Glasgow bands, he’s also enthusiastic about the musical vibrancy of his hometown. “Yeah you’ve got lots of good stuff like the Crystal Stilts, Vivian Girls, Titus Andronicus and The Manhattan Love Suicides” he says. “We’re friends with those bands and we really like their music.”
Certainly the New York music scene is nothing if not diverse. For example, the Pains’ good friends Titus Andronicus have a raucous, spiky punk sound which is a far cry from their more twee leanings. “Some people might find it surprising that I’m into a band like Titus Andronicus but the music you love is not always the same as the music you make” notes Kip. “You know, I’m really into glam rock stuff like Suede and T-Rex but I could never make that kind of music myself, it just wouldn’t be me!”
The band’s songwriting process starts with Kip recording rough demos in his bedroom. However, he feels the songs only come into their own when he takes them to the rest of the band. “Everyone in the band contributes to making the songs sound good” he says. “I wouldn’t want to take too much credit for writing the songs because they only become special when the whole band plays them.”
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart's self-titled debut is out now on Slumberland
http://www.myspace.com/thepainsofbeingpureatheart
No comments:
Post a Comment