Underneath the dull facade, however, there’s a near miraculous story behind the Brooklyn duo’s first record since their 2020 debut, Like New.
Eliza Callahan, who sings along with Jack Staffen, was diagnosed at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic with a rare and progressive autoimmune disease which she was told would soon cause her to lose all hearing. But surprisingly, after Callahan dealt with the symptoms for over a year, everything went into remission and she recovered. It was then that the pair began working on Who Is Afraid Of Blue?.
Purr’s latest is a brilliantly-timed exploration of the most primal of human emotions: fear. They do so with such ease that it feels natural, almost as if they harnessed it, letting fear itself take over control of the creative process. Vivid and tangible, the songs wrap arms around the listener with their memorable guitar licks and introspective lyrics.
The blend of Callahan and Staffen’s vocals is almost reminiscent of Jockstrap’s Georgia Ellery and Taylor Skye in terms of off-kilter unlikeliness. But it works satisfyingly well. It’s one of those records in which the more you listen, the better it becomes. You find yourself singing the undeniably catchy mantra of “Drift” on the way home from the supermarket, “you want it, you need it, you got it.”
In the standout title track, Staffen offers some of the most profound writing on the album - “I’m homesick for my life / when it felt just like open skies / so real and just mine / but have I lost my luck? / have I felt it enough? / have I felt it too much?” It reflects the anxiety of one’s twenties, its uncertainties, its decisions, the feelings of becoming a stranger to oneself. A couple tracks like “Honey” and “Receiver” lack the well-balanced production required to support their heavy, shoegaze-adjacent sounds, but as songs themselves, they’re just about up to par with the rest.
With the perfect amount of self-exploration and melodic experimentation, Who Is Afraid Of Blue? manages to let the band’s youth and authenticity shine through. Nearly every moment feels simultaneously planned and spontaneous, combining to create a record that glides along seamlessly, with the few setbacks merely a hiccup in an otherwise excellent 43 minutes.
