Late last week, American indie-pop outfit The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart tweeted about “Cure Your Heart,” a new song from Osaka outfit Wallflower. Makes sense for a couple reasons, most prominently being that Wallflower opened for the Slumberland group during their recent Japanese tour. Yet Wallflower also chase after the same hazy Polaroid influences The Pains have over their career, devoutly playing sounds straight from the Sarah Records offices of the mid 80’s. “Cure Your Heart,” then, presents an interesting study in influences – The Pains have been knocked/celebrated for being so faithful to their twee origins. Wallflower, relatively new to the scene, seemingly channels The Pains (the vocal similarities, for one), making this a copy of a copy of a pastel cardigan. Feel weird?
There is a good discussion buried somewhere in this situation, but it would be like bringing up politics at an outing to a water park. “Cure Your Heart” is a bouncy bit of indie-pop that is tough to frown at while it’s playing, all warm guitar and fuzzy vocals filtered through a shoegaze gauze. Coupled with a perfect release time – spring is finally starting to bloom in Japan – and Wallflower have made an enjoyable piece of pop. Listen below.
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