The Pains of Being Pure at Heart: s/t

Label: Slumberland

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart gave us the first great debut of 2009, an album exploding with hooks, energy, style and unabashed enthusiasm. The band’s name is no affectation: This local dream-pop quartet wears their emotions on their sleeves without sliding into anything resembling emo-esque self-pity. In short, the Pains of Being Pure at Heart (as acronyms go, even TPOBPAH is a mouthful) offer indie pop at its finest, bringing to mind recent acts like Crystal Stilts, Vivian Girls and Cause Co-Motion while retaining a darker, heavier edge that brings me back to the halcyon days of the Wedding Present, My Bloody Valentine and early Jesus and Mary Chain. If you love boy-girl harmonies, you’re gonna flip: Lead singer and guitarist Kip Berman has an appealing vulnerability that’s only sweetened by Peggy Wang‘s smooth background vocals, as the pair harmonize in front of a tight arrangement of crunching guitars, fuzzed-out keys and infectious jangle pop. Few records have helped maintain our collective spirits through this shitty recession than the Pains of Being Pure at Heart — without it, we’d have committed hari kari long ago. GET IT, your very survival may depend on it. (James)