Pale Waves – ‘Smitten’ review: loved-up liberation

23 September, 2024

Pale Waves, photo by Kelsi Luck

Pale Waves have never been afraid of changing things up, or wearing their influences on their sleeve. On their gorgeous debut album ‘My Mind Makes Noises’, the goth-pop band bring together shimmering ’80s pop and emo theatrics, leading to a close relationship with The 1975. 2021’s spiky ‘Who Am I?’ switched things up, pulling heavy inspiration from Alanis Morissette and ’90s alt-rock, while 2022’s ‘Unwanted’ was a snotty love letter to Avril Lavigne-style pop-punk.

READ MORE: Pale Waves: “We’ve become the most resilient band we know”

Their lush new album ‘Smitten’, however, sounds like a Pale Waves record, though there are plenty of nods to what’s come before. The fiery ‘Miss America’ is as urgent and defiant as anything on their last album, the dreamy ‘Thinking About You’ echoes The Cranberries, and ‘Seeing Stars’ is a burst of polished ’80s pop perfection. But instead of echoing their greatest hits, Pale Waves constantly offer something new with a refreshing swagger.

Lyrically as well, Pale Waves have really stepped things up with ‘Smitten’. Since the release of ‘Who Am I?’ cut ‘She’s My Religion’, the band have always celebrated the LGBTQI+ community. But with vocalist Heather Baron-Gracie using her own diary as inspiration, ‘Smitten’ is by far their queerest record yet. There’s heartbreak on twinkling opening number ‘Glasgow’ while ‘Last Train Home’ is driven by thundering loss. Elsewhere, the fearless ‘Not A Love Song’ deals with shame, sin and uncertainty.

But there’s also a whole lot of love to be found across ‘Smitten’ – songs that flirt with despair ultimately bear positive lessons about self-worth and acceptance that emerge over time. The wide-eyed ‘Kiss Me Again’, the triumphant ‘Gravity’ and the giddy ‘Perfume’ are utterly joyous. All this romance is a world away from the angst and fury that’s dominated their previous records, but Pale Waves really own these full-bodied love songs.

Pale Waves started many of ‘Smitten’’s big pop songs on acoustic guitar. Considering that creative process and the decade’s worth of experience they now possess, it’s unsurprising that there’s a newfound directness to ‘Smitten’. Baron-Gracie is no longer hiding behind pretty metaphors. “I’ll be the reason that your father gets so fucking mad/ I’ll be the sinner for those feelings you ignore,” she declares on the fiercely tender ‘Hate To Hurt You’. Ending with the groove-driven triumph of ‘Slow’, a song about lust, liberation and following your gut, ‘Smitten’ is a loved-up record that’ll have you falling for Pale Waves all over again.