Photo Credit: Niall Lea

Boasting much more romance than their previous records, ‘Smitten‘, PALE WAVES’ eagerly awaited fourth album, is set for release on 27th October via Dirty Hit. Filled with alt-pop earworms and reflections of the past, Smitten is like a breath of fresh air that encapsulates the feelings in early queer relationships stunningly, whether this be excitement, confusion, or pain.

The Manchester quartet have opted for four perfectly picked singles preceding the album’s release: ‘Perfume‘, ‘Glasgow‘, ‘Gravity‘ and ‘Still Thinking About You‘. With high influence from the likes of The Cranberries and The Cure, Heather Baron-Gracie reflects the feelings of being totally fascinated by someone in lead single and romantic anthem, ‘Perfume‘: “My mother says that when I want something I never let go / Call me obsessed but I don’t mind just as long as it’s all mine“. Despite its joyous and upbeat sound, ‘Glasgow‘ explores the reality of ending a relationship when there is “nothing left […] to repair“, and the contradicting feelings of heartbreak and euphoria that come with this. ‘Gravity‘ almost has a heavenly feel to it; Heather’s angelic and ethereal vocals introducing ‘Gravity‘ offer a floating feeling but are closely followed by the punchy alt-pop guitar riffs pulling the listener right back in “like gravity“. Perhaps it is merely a coincidence, or maybe it lyrically and sonically symbolises the undeniable attraction to someone yet having to face the obstacles religion may put in the way of queer relationships. Going back to the theme of reflecting on the past, “Thinking About You is about a situation when someone leaves and you can’t quite fully move on yet”, reveals Baron-Gracie. It is a wistful and dreamy reminiscence of a previous relationship, and the pain associated with this.

Written over two years between their US and UK tours, the band’s frontwoman, Heather, found she was finally in a headspace in which she was able to breathe and reflect on the past. Capturing and reflecting on this emotion throughout ‘Smitten‘, she “found [herself] writing about not just a certain time period, but [her] whole life from years ago”. Driven by romance, lust, and excitement, ‘Kiss Me Again‘ oozes influence from The Cure with its 80s-style intro, with ‘Miss American‘ and ‘Seeing Stars‘ very much reminiscent of ‘Television Romance‘ and similar sounds from ‘My Mind Makes Noises‘. On the contrary, ‘This Is Not A Love Song‘ is all about what you lost, delving into the consequences of shame, denial and ignorance of queer feelings in a relationship. Leading on from this, the loss and heartbreak of such relationships shine through in emotional and raw tracks ‘Last Train Home‘ and ‘Hate To Hurt You‘. “When I fall in love, I fall deep, and it’s interesting to me that you can feel so fascinated and smitten with someone and then they can become a total stranger. So, I feel like Smitten really summarised perfectly what I felt for others at a certain point.” says the Manchester-born singer-songwriter. This can be perfectly represented by the dreamy ‘Imagination‘ and ethereal closing track ‘Slow‘, where there is clear evidence of the album’s running themes of lust, desire, and romance throughout. With overruling influences from The Cure and The Cranberries in ‘Smitten‘, it is arguable that there is also noticeable reminiscence to the likes of Taylor Swift, Beabadoobee, and The 1975; however, this album is still undeniably and uniquely PALE WAVES.

Leaving the angst and pop-punk of their previous album ‘Unwanted‘ behind, PALE WAVES have opted for an alt-pop sound on their forthcoming album ‘Smitten‘, much more akin to that of their earlier work. Perfectly encapsulating the excitement, confusion and pain found in early queer relationships, Heather’s euphonious and undeniably recognisable vocals, paired with the earworm hooks and punchy snares, have made for what could potentially be the Manchester quartet’s driver to higher, and much-deserved, levels of success and recognition.