HEAVENLY- A Bout de Heavenly: The Singles LP

Received an 8.0 from Pitchfork.

"During their seven years of existence, Heavenly released four studio albums, but a recent singles collection, A Bout De Heavenly, makes the case that some of their most magical work existed in smaller formats.

At first, Heavenly might have appeared to be a continuation of Talulah Gosh under a different name. After all, the two bands shared nearly identical lineups: Fletcher, her brother Mathew, Peter Momtchiloff, and Robert Pursey (a few years later they were joined by Cathy Rogers). But as suggested by the project’s early singles, “I Fell in Love Last Night” and “Our Love is Heavenly,”

Heavenly would (for the most part) iron the punk wrinkles out of their songs. Built around upbeat melodies, ’60s pop harmonies, and a staunchly optimistic view of love (purely romantic, rarely sexual), these new songs were tighter than any of Talulah Gosh’s offerings. It was only fitting that Heavenly would sign to Sarah Records, the beloved Bristol label known for releasing music made by introspective wallflowers.

Like other Sarah bands, Heavenly’s style—both music and aesthetic—was polarizing. In its earliest days, indie pop was a parallel movement to punk. Both scenes touted the belief that anyone could make music on their own terms, that mistakes were something to be celebrated. But punk was associated with fearlessness, or at least the facade of that confidence. So maybe if you identified with the punk spirit but weren’t angling for anarchy, you became an indie pop kid. Instead of wearing a T-shirt held together with safety pins, you rocked anoraks and cardigans; you were probably a bit dweeby.

Critics reviled indie poppers for their “shambling” songs about crushes and heartache, grade school outfits, and embrace of “girly” qualities like sensitivity or softness. In Heavenly’s case, the criticism easily and often veered towards sexism." - Pitchfork