“Just come on and kiss me again.”

All the way from Manchester, Pale Waves is “Seeing Stars” in their fourth studio album Smitten. The four-piece has a home city that is known for breeding industry success stories with bands like The Smiths, Joy Division, and Oasis and has done it again with Pale Waves. Their Pop/Rock aura is driven by lead singer and guitarist Heather Baron-Gracie’s perfect blend of musical influence. Upon first listening, Smitten evokes an overwhelming nostalgia, transporting listeners back in time to the eras of Alanis Morrisette, The Cure, and The Cranberries.

Pale Waves formed in 2014 and signed their first record deal in 2017. Besides Baron-Gracie, the band consists of drummer Ciara Doran, guitarist Hugo Silvani, and bassist Charlie Woo. Smitten is an evolution from their 2000’s Avril Lavigne-style record Who Am I? (2021) and early Paramore-inspired riot album Unwanted (2022). This new album extends from punk to pop, really channeling 90s snarly fuzz guitar tones and reverb. To find their own sound, Pales Waves has experimented with tastes of the past. They are new yet familiar and palatable for all.

“Thinking About You” is an essence track, with lyrics and instrumentation that set the pace for the rest of the album and reveal the old souls of its creators. Sonic references to The Cranberries can be found immediately with its curtain-dropping intro that leads into Baron-Gracie’s echoing vocals. She does not hesitate to make this connection concrete by including the line, “Do the feelings linger?” Just like Dolores O’Riordan of The Cranberries, Baron-Gracie is in too deep with romantic feelings for a lover she’s lost.

Other tracks also reveal a similar sense of surrendered longing. Track five “Perfume” is about wanting something temporary to last forever. Baron-Gracie’s lyrics hold tight to borrowed clothing with the hope of identifying a fleeting scent, “My mother said when I want something, I never let it go / Call me obsessed, but I don’t mind just as long as it’s all mine.”

A notable theme of Pale Waves’ Smitten is the push and pull of real relationships and intervening imaginations, “She’s livin’ in my mind,” “Little does she know / She keeps pullin’ me / Like gravity.” The song “Gravity” is like a dream, and Baron-Gracie might be in over her head. Similarly, “Imagination” is harmonious as a song, but dissonant about accepting reality, “You and I stay in my imagination.” In this case, the smitten feeling becomes stronger with fantasy.

Pale Waves covers a wide range of emotion and relatability, however, the rhythmic pace of Smitten does not fluctuate far from its standard. The album opener “Glasgow” and album closer “Slow” both utilize upbeat rhythms and vocal flips, bringing the power back to heartbroken lyrics. The sad songs are not slow like you’d expect, and the rage songs are not heavier in that sense. It’s more a matter of the chord progressions, whether melancholy or moderately edgy, that allow certain feelings to enter. This is acceptable for Pale Waves because their damp minor chord aesthetic is similar to one that would criticize a cliche sad song.

Their inclusion of “Last Train Home” is beneficial for the flow of this album. It introduces a swing-rock tempo that trucks along like a railway train. Appearing mid-way through the record, “Last Train Home” acts as an interlude before falling into “Kiss Me Again.” Whether “It’s just for tonight” or lingers on forever, Smitten captures the raw charm of attraction.