July 2’s date at World Cafe Live is a homecoming concert for the Britpop-influenced indie band The Pains of Being Pure at Heart.
Founding lead singer and songwriter Kip Berman said in a phone interview he had childhood homes in Strafford, Paoli and Frazer, and that his mother still lives in Narberth.
“I am greatly looking forward to finishing (this leg of) the tour in our hometown,” Berman said, adding that drummer Chris Schackerman “lives in Philly” and bassist Jacob Danish Sloan’s mother also lives in this area.
He also hinted that former Pains of Being Pure at Heart vocalist and keyboardist Jen Goma could possibly make an onstage cameo because she also has ties to the region. Goma, who has since joined the band A Sunny Day in Glasgow, sings lead vocals on the song “So True” on Pains of Being Pure at Heart’s to-be-released fourth album “The Echo of Pleasure.”
The singles currently streaming from the album, which drops Sept. 1, are “Anymore” and “When I Dance with You.”
Berman talked at length about having a female co-vocalist in the group (Jess Rojas is in Goma’s former role). Before Pains of Being Pure at Heart became a MySpace sensation almost 10 years ago, Berman said he had been in other bands and was looking for something else besides “five dudes trying to impress each other with their dude-ly-ness.”
“It was always my idea from the start there needs to be a male/female balance to the music. It’s always something that makes the music better. I love music that explores the contradictions of life and I love music that explores the fullness of life,” he said.
The 37-year-old guitarist became a father last year. Berman’s daughter makes him excited to return home from touring. “The second she was born … I can’t even express how wonderful and unexpected this part of life has been. It’s like my life feels fuller,” he said.
One drawback, though, is that some of the older songs, such as “Young Adult Friction,” now feel like they’re from a distinctly different chapter of his life. Long-time fans shouldn’t fret though. Berman said that that song, “This Love is (expletive) Right,” “Higher Than the Stars,” “Come Saturday” and “Everything With You” are still in the band’s repertoire.
The band’s name comes from a short story written by “someone I knew when I was living in Portland. He was a well-known chap around town.”
“The phrase has always stuck with me. I was playing in a band and I said: ‘We should have a song called ‘The Pains of Being Pure at Heart.”
They said: ‘No, that’s a bad idea.’
It’s about driving to something you may not reach, but it’s worth it anyway. Living in Philly, you know that – trust the process,” Berman said, invoking the mantra often repeated by Philadelphia 76ers fans these days.
