The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – Higher Than The Stars EP
by The Real Chris Marsh on Sep.25, 2009, under Reviews
It seems strangely out of place yet is entirely welcome, like your best friend from home coming to visit you at Uni. An autumn EP release as a follow up to 2008’s eponymous LP, The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart haven’t quite served up the full album we were maybe hoping for, but boy, have they come close. Production has tightened up, while retaining the distant, slacker-pop vibe, and there’s even hints on Twins towards some power-ballad territory.
It’s not until the final track, a St Etienne remix, that the true sadness and tragedy of the title track is revealed, as we realise that we were fooled all along. Amongst the lo-fi, glorypop, the lyrics tell of the drunken teenage fumble “in the back of your mother’s car”. Granted, the title track is more than reminiscent of previous single, This Love Is F______ Right, especially with its ambiguous lyrics, but who cares when The Pains are keeping this up!
