Abandonment Issue

Released in 2014, Abandonment Issue serves as a significant supplemental release to The Pains of Being Pure at Heart's third full-length album, 'Days of Abandon'. This EP highlights the band's shift away from the dense, fuzzed-out noise rock of their debut toward a more sophisticated, synth-inflected indie pop sound. The first half of the EP features fully realized studio tracks like 'Impossible' and 'Summer of Dreams', which showcase Kip Berman's knack for infectious hooks and shimmering arrangements. The second half provides a rare glimpse into the band's creative process with 'Winter Station' demos of 'Kelly' and 'Life After Life'. These tracks are notably more sparse and lo-fi, emphasizing the raw emotional core of the songwriting. Critically, the EP was seen as a refinement of their C86 and Sarah Records influences, polished for a modern indie audience while maintaining the vulnerability that defined the Brooklyn indie pop scene of the early 2010s.