Ahead of a European tour later this month and next, The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart have a new single featuring two covers of “two of their favorite bands ever,” The Magnetic Fields and East River Pipe. Out digitally today, with a limited-edition 7″ vinyl release available on October 29, the single marks the indie pop band’s first new music since their stellar 2011 album, Belong.

On the A-side is a cover of The Magnetic Fields’ “Jeremy,” a pick that Pains’ keyboardist/vocalist Peggy Wang explains thusly:

“The Magnetic Fields were a band without context. I can look back at the time and see how the Magnetic Fields were a band that could exist outside of a context and still make me fall in love with them. I didn’t need to know if they were anyone else’s favorite band, I didn’t need to know what they looked like or where they were from or any frivolous details a hypothetical Tigerbeat [sic] interview might have divulged to me. The Magnetic Fields might have been the last band I ever unconditionally loved without ever stopping to try to understand why — just the kind of love story I hoped to one day live through.”

The Pains have reworked the psychedelic-tinged, drone-y original into something exponentially poppier. Some Magnetic Fields’ purists may voice disapproval, but I’m thankful that the tuba did not survive the transition.

On the flip side is a cover of East River Pipe’s “My Life Is Wrong.” Pains’ frontman Kurt Feldman first encountered home recordist F.M. Cornog’s song on a used copy of a Sarah Records label compilation that he purchased in the summer of 1999 (much more here). Interestingly, East River Pipe’s version was originally issued as a B-side (to his 1993 single, “She’s A Real Good Time”).

The Pains are offering their cover of “My Life Is Wrong” as a free download:

Purchase The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – “Jeremy” (Magnetic Fields cover) via iTunes, Amazon MP3.