Infinite Shuffle

Let’s face it, 99.99 percent of music that’s out there at any given time is just a rip-off of some piece of music that came before it.

The key for bands to stand out is to mix their influences enough to sound fresh and not too derivative.

That’s what makes The Pains of Being Pure At Heart so pleasurable to listen to. Their music is dripping with nostalgic sounds of the ’80s and ’90s, but it still sounds new and exciting. Just ask this Amazon review.

Co-opting the best of The Cure and other post-punk/pop bands and combining it with the goodness of shoegaze and fuzz rock, The Pains have created a sound that would make any angsty teenager’s heart skip a beat.

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart – Young Adult Friction

That song was the big single off their 2009 self-titled debut LP that put them on the map as one of the “it” bands of late 2008/early ’09. It included a slew of strong tracks, such as “Hey Paul”, “This Love Is Fucking Right”, “Contender”, “Come Saturday”, “The Tenure Itch” and “A Teenager In Love”, which totally rips off a David Bowie song from the ’80s that I can’t think of.

The album was preceded by a self-titled EP in 2007, which, despite having no real standout tracks, introduced the New York City quartet to the music world as a lo-fi alternative for indie rock fans.

In September 2009, The Pains put out a four-track EP, Higher Than the Stars, which showed the band’s move to a more complex, fine-tuned sound. The disc was highlighted by “Twins” and a very Cure-like title track.

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart – Twins

While the first full-length album had the band’s best singles, the 2011 follow-up, Belong, is the better disc from beginning to end. The songs are tighter, the lo-fi stuff is gone from the production and the band just seems more sure of itself.

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart – Heart In Your Heartbreak

I hope to groove out to the band on the final day of Lollapalooza this year.