If It's Too Loud...

We know, we know... "Say No to Love" isn't a brand new song from The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. However, the late 00's heroes are reuniting for some shows and have announced a B-sides album. "Say No to Love" comes from that collection. If you already love the emo-inflected indie rock and dream pop of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, you're going to adore this song, which you may already know. It's catchy and hazy and everything we love from the band. It's much more of a pop song than I ever would have admitted back in 2009, but that fantastic sound that blurs the lines of indie rock and pop. Now let's just hope that their reunion tour makes it to the States... Kip Berman says of the band's upcoming B-sides compilation: "Many of these songs, like those that comprised our debut record, were written in that *now* – making up in wild pop fantasy what we couldn't quite yet achieve through musical ability. But even if that *now* is...

Photo by Jena Crumbo The Natvral is the current project of Kip Berman, formerly of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. The band's new single, "A Portrait of Sylvie Vartan," continues Berman's move away from his previous band's indie pop sound into a more roots based one. This new song isn't quite as folky as The Natvral's previous music, but is more of a roots based rock and roll. There's a little bit of Bob Dylan's ramble here, along with the vibe of some of Tom Petty's mid tempo songs. Maybe it's just because Berman is now New Jersey based, but I'm hearing some of Bruce Springsteen's sound that stops just shy of the arena rockers. After comparing this song to three classic rockers, I do feel the need to say "A Portrait of Sylvie Vartan" isn't rehashing an older rock sound. This is definitely a modern song that has roots based in the past. Kip Berman says of the new song: “‘A Portrait of Sylvie Vartan’ is about the allu...

The Natvral is Kip Berman's (formerly of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart) new project with a more folky sound than his previous band. "Sun Blisters," his new single, is a little less folk but nowhere near the indie pop of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Instead, "Sun Blisters" is more of a 90's style Americana rocker. It's a mid-tempo Cracker meets Tom Petty kinda song. There's a bit of a Bob Dylan ramble to it, but it's definitely a rock song. Maybe it's just the fact that the word "sun" is in the title, but "Sun Blisters" screams just driving around in the summer without any rush to get to your destination. Kip Berman says of the new song: "It's a song about how you don't always want what's for the best-- and neither do I." You can listen to "Sun Blisters" below. Tethers  is due out April 2 on Kanine Records. You can pre-order a copy here . For more on The Natvral, check out the artist...

Ex-The Pains of Being Pure at Heart frontman Kip Berman has released a new single from his new project The Natvral, and it continues his movement away from his previous band's sound to a more folky one. In fact, "New Moon" is pure folk. "New Moon" is just vocals and acoustic guitar, leaning heavily on vocals. It's a lovely, quiet song that's definitely a strong divergence from his previous band's sound. The rock band frontman goes acoustic/folk solo act is a pretty standard trope, but no one is going to complain when it's done this well. Kip Berman explains the meaning behind the new song: "A friend of mine used to date a kind-hearted, but poor musician. At some point, their relationship ended and she went on to marry someone that offered a bit more stability - and asked me to sing a song at their wedding. I gladly sang the song she asked me to, but that experience led me to write another. "I didn't mean to sympathize with her ex - ...

Photo by Remy Holwick It's been four years since The Pains of Being Pure at Heart released their final album. In that time, singer Kip Berman left Brooklyn for Princeton, NJ and had two kids. His new musical project, The Natvral, reflects that change. The first single off of the upcoming album, "Why Don't You Come Out Anymore?," is about all the life changes that come with getting older and staying in a lot more. It's a more standard folk rock song, more along the lines of an alt-rock Bob Dylan and Tom Petty. It's also a much bigger sound than his previous band. It shows a level of happiness despite being about losing a lot of the things that make you you, while morphing into a new version of yourself without even realizing it. You can watch the video for "Why Don't You Come Out Anymore?" below. Tethers is due out April 2 on Dirty Bingo Records. You can pre-order a copy here . For more on The Natvral, check out the artist's Facebook and Twit...

Store Front either met in the most or least punk rock way, depending on your perspective. Back in 2013, Peggy Wang was working an office job while playing bass in The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. She heard someone in the office singing The Replacements and met writer Amy Rose Spiegel. The two started writing songs together, and five years later have formed Store Front and are releasing their debut single.  To keep the band forming in an office vibe going, "Go for Broke" is about living in New York City and trying to pay your rent while still having a creative outlet. Musically, "Go for Broke" reminds me of 90's bands that are now reclassified as dream pop like Belly or Lush, but a more upbeat version of those bands. Plus, even before I read their bio and saw that Spegel was a writer the song had a literary feel to it. You can listen to "Go for Broke" below. The single is available now on Store Front's Bandcamp . For more on Store Front, chec...

Photo via Facebook We love covers here at If It's Too Loud..., especially if it's a band covering an entire album from one of their heroes, even if it's for a sad reason. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart have announced that they will be covering Tom Petty's beyond iconic Full Moon Fever. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart may not be the most obvious choice to take on an entire album from Petty, but that is the man's true legacy: Just about anyone you meet is a fan, and if they aren't you don't ever have to trust them on anything.  To start off, they've released their version of "Runnin' Down a Dream." It's not a 100% exact replica of the original, but it's maybe 95% Petty, 5% The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Their fandom is very visible with this version, and the reverence they have for Petty's masterpiece is obvious.  You can listen to The Pains of Being Pure at Heart's version of "Runnin' Down a Dream"...

Not gonna lie, guys - this was a disappointing release week. Album of the Week : Artist : Mogwai Album : Every Country's Sun Quick Description : Latest from the ochestrally(?) tailored rock act. Why You Should Listen : Is it really post-rock? Who knows, but Mogwai is good and this is good. Overall Thoughts : Yes, this is probably my favorite album of the week in a very weak one, but that’s not to say Mogwai isn’t still as good as they typically are here. If you’re a fan, you’re getting more of the same here, and that’s certainly worthwhile. What they do is so unique and so solid that you don't want to miss it. Recommendation : Worth a listen even in a busy week. Artist : The Pains of Being Pure at Heart Album : The Echo of Pleasure Quick Description : A departure from the standard from these indie favorites. Why You Should Listen : You wanted more 80s throwback in your life. Overall Thoughts : One of the first bands both Ken and I fell for at the same time wh...

I've been a little cold on the last few releases from The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Nothing has really hit me the way their self-titled debut album and EP did. That being said, their new cover of Tori Amos' "China" is amazing. "China" might be the Tori song I always seem to forget about, but once I hear it again I wonder why I ever listen to anything else. It's a home recorded demo of the song, with very minimal instrumentation. Gone is the indie pop and shoegaze normally associated with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and in it's place is a sound very similar to Buffalo Tom's more laid back covers. It's something you absolutely should listen to today. Listen to "China" below. For more info on The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, check out their website .

This week's new release slate is really all over the place. Mirah - Changing Light : I'm embarrassed to admit that my first reason for listening to Mirah back whenever I first heard of her was because I thought she was the artist Nick Hornby constantly wrote about. Not only is that a questionable reason to get into a band, but he was also writing about Marah with an A, not Mirah with an I. Regardless, I never thought much of it again until her 2009 album (a)spera , which was a beautifully haunting melodic piece from start to finish. Changing Light shifts gears a bit for her on a whole, being more raw and straightforward without losing a lot of the tone that we've gotten used to with her. Whether this album will have the staying power for me that (a)spera had remains to be seen, but it's certainly the best release of this week, one of the more interesting listens of recent releases, and worth a try for you. I Saved Latin! A Tribute to Wes Anderson : I've t...