Growing out of the emo throwback sound that defined their earliest tracks, Michigan-based indie act
Pity Sex turned in a brilliant proper debut with the layered and dreamy
Feast of Love. At least part of the band's songwriting falls in line with the mostly imagined nostalgia for the golden age of '90s indie rock that they share with punky contemporaries like
Swearin',
Yuck, and
Speedy Ortiz. While the wistful melodies and downtrodden slacker pop hooks could peg
Pity Sex as '90s revivalists to some extent, their meticulously dialed-in arsenal of fuzzy guitar tones, inventive production, and unexpected shifts in both melody and song structure set them apart. Without worshiping too obviously at any of the respective altars of the greats,
Pity Sex manage to capture some of the beautiful dreamlike violence of early shoegaze in their guitar squall and some of the mystery and vulnerability of the best 4AD artists, especially in the gorgeous and
Cocteau Twins-indebted album closer, "Fold." ~ Fred Thomas