When The Pains of Being Pure at Heart came to blog-prominence in 2009 with their eponymous debut album, most critics made the same observation: this was a record that sounded as if it was written and produced in 1986, most likely in Glasgow, and kept in a time capsule until it was let loose unto the world. What’s interesting, and mildly terrifying, is that it’s basically the same difference in years between 1986 and 2007 when The Pains of Being Pure at Heart formed, as to their formation and this reunion tour in 2025. I bought The Pains of Being Pure at Heart from a record shop, after getting a bus, with actual real cash, in 2009. That is how old I have somehow become.
This passing of time creates a new emotional dimension to The Pains of Being Pure at Heart’s already intensely impassioned songs. Before they were writing songs of the young: love, heartbreak, joy, shame, hope. They were songs written by twenty-somethings in the style of bands whose members were now middle-aged. But now it is The Pains of Being Pure at Heart themselves who are middle-aged playing songs that were defiantly about youth.
Still, time crushes all, the show must go on, and there is no shame in that. This tour has seen the band reform to play their debut album for its 15th anniversary, followed by a second set of “hits” and rarities.
From the opening chords of opener ‘Contender,’ the band are impressively strong, performing with desire and dedication. Singer Kip Berman thrashes at his guitar generating enough feedback the reverb is still crackling round my head. Guitarist and bassist Alex Naidus and Christoph Hochheim bop their knees with surprising vitality and keyboardist Peggy Wang remains effortlessly cool.
In the post-Indie Sleaze era, when indie has fallen far out of fashion, watching The Pains of Being Pure at Heart perform songs like ‘Young Adult Friction’ and a ‘Teenager in Love’ is a reminder of exciting indiepop is as of a genre. That mix of melody, clever, heartfelt lyrics and DIY spirit is like nothing else music can offer.
After finishing with the dense and dreamy ‘Gentle Sons,’ the band return to play some from their later albums. ‘Belong’ and ‘Heart in Your Heartbreak’ from their second album highlight their heavy side, where the influence of Orange Juice and The Pastels was replaced by mid-90s radio rock of The Smashing Pumpkins.
They also perform four songs from their recently released rarities album Perfect Right Now: A Slumberland Collection 2008-2010. ‘Say No to Love’ is a soft, Cure-infused of pure teenage longing, while ‘Romana’ with it’s Jesus and Mary Chain stomping drums feels inherently anthemic.
They finish with a song named after their own band, and it feels like a distillation of them as a group. A pop song submerged in reverb, catchy melody, pounding rhythm and the relentless refrain of “we will never die.” It feels like a statement about the band and their place in 2025. Yes, this is a night of nostalgia. Yes, we write songs as if the C86 tape was the only album ever recorded. But here we are, still going, in a room of ecstatic fans, so maybe these are songs that, in their own small way, won’t ever die.
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart are on tour until 23/11/25. Information can be found here: https://thepainsofbeingpureatheart.com/
You can find more of James Turrell’s writing on his FREE Substack James on… Everything(ish). You can subscribe here: https://jamesoneverythingish.substack.com/
