All my favourite bands keep breaking up. The phrase “indefinite hiatus” chills me to my core. Silver Jews, Electrelane, Sleater Kinney, Favours for Sailors; you’re breaking my heart like you’d idly snap a guitar string. 

WORDS: STEPHEN PIETRZYKOWSKI

It’s an emotional wrench when a band parts ways, especially if you’ve invested time and money in stalking one of the smaller bands around the country and buying every shitty quality T-shirt they ever sold just to help support them in buying even shittier quality drugs.

The pain is notched up a level when the band weren’t around long enough to release a proper album and fulfill their potential. This means you’re not even afforded the opportunity to scream with barely disguised disdain “but I was into them before YOU”. These bands are selfish bastards because they decided to split up way before they made it big and starve you of indie kudos.

While you’re getting a bit teenage teary about the fact your favourite band have split because the singer has moved to the Cotswolds to work in masonry, spare a thought for fans of Portland power-pop punks Exploding Hearts. Their story is one of absolute tragedy, even if it did start with incredible things.

In early 2003, they released their one and only studio album Guitar Romantic. Excuse me for coming over all Uncut, but it’s an outright classic. They wore their influences brazenly on their sleeves, essentially a modern American version of the Buzzcocks, but with more lyrics about meth and talking to squirrels. Strong subject matter. Even Pitchfork got slippery when wet about them (8.8!). That’s credibility right there.

Six years on, Guitar Romantic still sounds like the best summer album ever, all sunshine, young love and higher-than-the-sky romanticism. So far, so fun. But that was until July 20th 2003 – yes, it is just over six years to the day and we all know what number the devil is…

Speeding down Interstate 5 while on tour, their van overturned, throwing band members Jeremy Cage and Adam Cox from the vehicle and killing them instantly. Bassist, Mark Fitzgerald later died in hospital. The only member to survive the crash was guitarist Terry Six, escaping with minor cuts. Imagine being Terry Six. Worst. Feeling. Ever. They lived fast, died young, but I’m not too sure about the beautiful corpses (blame the tarmac burns).

With three of the four original members tragically killed, there was no way the band could continue. It’s not as if Terry could helicopter in three Paul Rodgers. And plus, Exploding Hearts are hardly Queen. They never had a chance to play arenas, even if their few fans do write things on Youtube like “OMG greatest band to walk the Earth” and “The Hearts are my favourite band, and I’m pretty sure they’re gonna be for as? long as I’m alive”.

Their few devout fans were treated to one final swansong, with the band’s label excavating the vaults to release a hit-and-miss collection of demos – Shattered (2006). But the Exploding Hearts are hardly the indie Tupac. There wasn’t much to spread around. Mourning fans don’t have much to cling to, other than hugging their pillows tightly at night like a surrogate second album. Poor guys.

Terry Six has gone on to be in another band (The Nice Boys), but inevitably hasn’t managed to quite capture the teenage hangover dreams of Exploding Hearts. Not many bands have, although Black Lips have tried their hardest, bless ‘em.

So, next time some indie stalwart band splits and you begin posting on Drowned In Sound about how it’s the “hardest thing in the world”, think of Exploding Hearts. Think about how it’s definitely not better to burn out than fade away. Think about how much of a pussy Kurt Cobain was. Then put on Guitar Romantic; the perfect soundtrack to the Summer of Death 2009. Just don’t die, alright…

Exploding Hearts – Modern Kicks

Exploding Hearts – “Modern Kicks”

Exploding Hearts – Boulevard Trash

Exploding Hearts – “Boulevard Trash”