The band offered a brief statement saying, “”We’ll be taking an indefinite hiatus from this project. Thank you for all the support. See you on the other side.”

Pity Sex released their second album, ‘White Hot Moon’, earlier this year via Run For Cover Records, which was followed by the departure of guitarist/vocalist, Britty Drake. The band also recently wrapped up tours of Australia and the UK.

Check out the video for ‘Burden You’ below.

In 2016 however,  the term has been resuscitated into the idea of music that, at its core, would be indie rock played at 120 decibels and designed for swaying from side to side. Regardless, Pity Sex have their own unique spin on the genre, bringing emo influences into the mix which altogether creates a pretty earworm inducing sound.

First up are noise pop band, Eugene Quell, playing their home territory to a decent sized audience. In some ways their stage presence and general demeanour are reminiscent of bands like Joyce Manor and Weezer but with a lo-fi British spin. An unexpected cover of Blondie’s ‘Heart Of Glass’ has the audience fervently dancing along as they blast through a good chunk of their brief discography.

For a band that have their original roots with math rock/post hardcore its a refreshing transition to see frontman Toby Hays do a project that’s so different but clearly has a lot of fun with. It’s nothing particularly deep or game changing but Eugene Quell do their thing very well.

It’s only until Pity Sex come on when you start to realise that far less people have come out to see them for their final UK show of the year compared to when they last came over. Again, benefit of the doubt could potentially be given due to the show clashing with other events happening the same night, but sadly songs like ‘What Might Soothe You?’ and ‘Coca Cola’ sound incredibly empty without Britty’s  vocals and the crowd’s reaction feels limp after every song.

The high energy instrumentation and distortion pedal layered guitar hooks are still there, yet Pity Sex seemed to sound less put together and concise compared to their studio recordings.  A rather bizarre and out of place cover of The La La’s ‘There She Goes’ is thrown near the end of the set which, in all fairness actually, does suit the band’s style very well, but overall this set is rather disappointing finish to their UK tour this time around.

There’s still potential for the band to pick up where they left off but maybe a new record with a slightly different direction might be suitable rather than sticking with the current material that just doesn’t have the same impact live anymore.

ASHWIN BHANDARI

We sent Andreas Yiasoumi to capture the magic.

Their latest release is last year’s ‘I Will Work the Land’ EP on Exploding in Sound Records and Tipp City.

October
05 BRIGHTON Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar
06 BRISTOL Louisiana
07 MANCHESTER Soup Kitchen
08 LEEDS Headrow House
09 LIVERPOOL Studio 2
10 GLASGOW Hug and Pint
11 SHEFFIELD Corporation
12 LONDON Oslo

Much like their 2013 breakthrough album, ‘Feast Of Love’, you sort of know what to expect from ‘White Hot Moon’. Rather than take a leap into uncharted territory, Pity Sex have simply stuck to what they know. The melancholic, lovelorn lyrics that have been charming their audience are present and correct. Warm, fuzzy guitars, interspersed with saccharine breaks are still there, and the inviting dual vocal of Brennan Greaves and Britty Drake is as potent as ever.

What saves ‘White Hot Moon’ from being too predictable, is the song writing. If the infectious ‘Burden You’ didn’t have depth, or ‘Bonhomie’ wasn’t so perfectly crafted, it would make the album forgettable. Thankfully that isn’t the case here at all. It is probably the reason that Pity Sex decided to keep to their chosen path, because quite frankly, they are damn good at it.

In the past, Pity Sex have been mistakenly labelled as “shoegaze”, yet certain elements, such as tremolo picking, and white-washing simple chord progressions with reverb and delay, have been utilised in the best way. Their tight rhythm section provides a solid backbone for the bright melodies of ‘Orange and Red’, while dream-pop hooks shimmer underneath Drake’s hazy vocal, as she takes the lead on ‘Dandelion’.

While at no point does ‘White Hot Moon’ become a vehicle for raw urgency, or build into cascading walls of noise, it doesn’t really need to. The up tempo, driving riffs of ‘What Might Soothe You?’, and the bright power-pop of ‘Wappen Beggars’ provide enough dissonance in their own right.

With Pity Sex carrying on the tradition set by their previous releases, it leads to ‘White Hot Moon’ being immediate, and instantly engaging. Somewhat like meeting up with an old friend or lover for the first time in a few years; you know what they are like, you know their personality, and they have a familiar warmth. If you are already smitten with Pity Sex, then ‘White Hot Moon’ will only further your love for them.

GLEN BUSHELL

‘White Hot Moon’ follows on from Pity Sex’s debut LP ‘Feast Of Love’, which was released back in 2013. Due for release on Run For Cover Records, it’s one of the label’s many indie and rock crossover successes.

Head over to BandCamp to hear ‘White Hot Moon’ in full. There’s also a special discount on pre-orders up until release.

It’s the fourth track to appear from the record, following ‘What Might Soothe You?‘, ‘Burden You‘, and ‘Bonhomie‘.

Pity Sex have unveiled their cover of ‘Gigantic’ by Pixies for the forthcoming split with Code Orange side project Adventures via Sterogum. As previously mentioned each band has contributed an original song and a cover for the release, with Adventures covering ‘Behind This Wall’ by melodic hardcore band Turning Point. The split 7″ will be released October 7th via Run For Cover and is available pre-order now, and you can hear the Pity Sex cover by clicking the link below.

Pity Sex stream ‘Gigantic’ via Stereogum

Side A

01 Adventures – Flowing Through
02 Adventures – Behind This Wall (Turning Point Cover)

Side B

01 Pity Sex – Acid Reflex
02 Pity Sex – Gigantic (Pixies Cover)