Wild Nights by Pins

The British band Pins works the smooth and jagged angles that intersect dream-pop, shoegaze, and garage punk to create a stylized sophomore record.

Wild Nights thematically glorifies universal moments of lust and danger; later, when they try to clean up the shards of their painful breakups, they wise up and realize that love is never a sure bet.

The group comes out guns blazing on the punk-rock “Baby Bhangs,” seemingly shocked at how good being bad can be. The bright guitar jangle of “Young Girls” embodies what most disheartened teens are going through, living in blank and bleak cement suburbs. Instead of sitting around waiting for their big break to come, Pins suggest breaking out.

By the time you hit the confident ease of the shoegaze sound on “Curse These Dreams,” the band establishes itself as heartbroken dream-lovers, moving confidently through “wild nights.” On the more retro biker-chic songs like “If Only,” they storm the genre full-tilt, and singer Faith Holgate declares her loneliness in love. Holgate’s confidence sells lines like, “I tell myself I’m okay, but honestly, I don’t believe me,” and sounds sure of, and resigned in, her femininity.

Pins have shown more dimension than what can be expressed through anger and straight punk chords. Through Sophie Galpin’s pounding drums that glumly sound the beat, Holgate’s rich, romantic voice, and solid low end from bassist Anna Donigan and high end from guitarist Lois McDonald, the band allows its songs to breathe and flow and slowly grab momentum, until you too feel their loss.

• Record: Wild Nights
• Artist: Pins
• Label: Bella Union
• Songs: (1) Baby Bhangs (2) Young Girls (3) Curse These Dreams (4) Oh Lord (5) Dazed By You (6) Got It Bad (7) Too Little Too Late (8) House of Love (9) If Only (10) Molly (11) Everyone Says