My Mind Makes Noises is the first studio album released by Mancunian quartet Pale Waves, coming just seven months after their studio EP All The Things I Never Said. The EP won plaudits for its jagged, pop-rock sound, with lead singer Heather Baron-Gracie belting out four encouraging singles. They were unique, with amazing guitar riffs and incredibly catchy pop hooks melding with the exceptional vocals to prove a teaser for their full-length debut. If nothing else, the macabre lyrics reveling Baron-Gracie’s personal life and pounding drums promised an intriguing blend of gothic darkness and poppy catchiness. However, My Mind Makes Noises lacks that originality. Pale Waves are still in their infancy, and certainly need time to find their sound, but this offering feels incredibly artificial. All of the ingredients are there for a The Cure-like sound; catchy bass riffs, driving drum beats, great pop hooks and an obviously talented lead singing about personal isolation, broken romance and depression. However, somewhere along the way any aspect of uniqueness or heart has been lost.
The lyrics of My Mind Makes Noises have an dramatic range in quality, at times sharp and introspective and at others inarguably hackneyed. One of the album’s flagship songs, There’s a Honey, is a fantastically bitter portrayal of a broken romance as Baron-Gracie acknowledges her inability to sustain a relationship: “And there’s somebody that I know I’m bad for/And you see, I’d like to keep your heart for me/And there’s somebody that I know I’m bad for/And I can’t look away”. The heartbreak of these lines is incredibly gut-wrenching, admitting that despite her knowledge that the relationship is doomed, and despite knowing that neither of them is good for each other, she can’t face living without them. However, this raw emotion feels cheapened by vague and hollow lyrics elsewhere, such as in the finale, Karl, who’s chorus croons “Sometimes you cross my mind/Well that’s a fucking lie/’Cause you’re on my mind all of the time”. It is no exaggeration to say that these particular lines are bordering on cringeworthy, and they’re far from the worst in the album. There’s no denying that some of the songs here are very personal, painting a specific picture with lots of heart, but the vast majority feel bland (and thus hollow). A friend I was discussing the album with called it a “stretched-out EP”, and sadly I agree with that; strip out the empty, vacuous ‘songs about nothing’ and you’re left with barely more content than their initial four-song EP.
‘There’s a Honey’ is a fantastically bitter portrayal of a broken romance
All this negativity is not to say that there’s no promise here, of course. Baron-Gracie clearly can write raw, emotional, personal lyrics (as she does on several of this album’s songs), and her range is very impressive for such a young and inexperienced front-woman – slipping seamlessly from powerful rock ballads to murmuring acoustics. The pop-hooks in evidence are fantastic, and certainly merit a comparison to Dirty Hit label-mates, The 1975. I would also be remiss not to praise the percussion and bass throughout, even if the guitar did feel a little insipid at times. However, there is a significant amount of work and development needed before Pale Waves find their identity and build on it. This is true for every band, especially this early on in their life cycle; listen to the debut albums by The Beatles, Pink Floyd or The Rolling Stones in comparison to their later work. So, I’m hoping the next effort by Pale Waves will be more focused, with a clearer ‘sound’ and identity; they need to find their niche and perfect it. I’m also hoping that they’re given the benefit of time to experiment and grow organically rather than being pressured to fit in with production and studio deadlines – this album just didn’t feel ready, with too many ‘filler’ songs insulating those with real emotional kick. Part of the reason that I’m so critical is the talent is clearly on show, but its submerged beneath blandness and artificial-feeling production. I’ll definitely be keen to follow Pale Waves’ trajectory from now on, though.
There’s definitely potential here, and a few songs are utterly fantastic, but My Mind Makes Noises feels too padded and insincere to be a solid recommendation. Give this one a miss, but Pale Waves just need the right spark to set them off – fingers crossed for their next try.
