Television Romance

"Television Romance" is a song by the English indie pop band Pale Waves. The song was released through Dirty Hit on 16 August 2017, and is the second single from the band's expected debut album, My Mind Makes Noises (2018). It debuted at #83 on the Scottish Singles Chart on 17 November 2017 and at #2 on the UK Vinyl Singles and UK Singles Sales Charts.[1]

"Television Romance"
Single by Pale Waves
from the album My Mind Makes Noises
Released	16 August 2017 10 November 2017 (7")
Recorded	2017
Genre	Indie pop
Length	3:25
Label	Dirty Hit
Songwriter(s)	Ciara Doran & Heather Baron-Gracie
Producer(s)	Matthew Healy George Daniel
Pale Waves singles chronology
"There's a Honey" (2017) "Television Romance" (2017) "New Year's Eve" (2017)

Release

The song was originally released on 16 August 2017 as a download and made available on streaming services the same day.[2] It was re-released on 10 November 2017 as a 7" double A-side single with the band's debut single "There's a Honey", pressed on a limited edition white vinyl.[3]

Reception

Upon release, "Television Romance" received positive reviews from critics. Thomas Smith, writing for NME on 17 August 2017, stated that the song was "a shimmering, summer-tinged indie banger" and that "it's the song’s heavenly chorus that allows the Manchester quartet to elevate into a league of their own."[4] Clash writer, Robin Murray, called the song "a sugar-sweet ear-worm of a track." and described it as "Infectious of chorus and glistening of production, 'Television Romance' is a story of fantasy coming true".[5]

Online music blog, The VPME, praised the track, naming it their track of the day on 17 August 2017. Reviewer Andy Von Pip noted that the song was a "lovingly crafted slice of slick but heartfelt indie, one that you could imagine being featured in a John Hughes montage" although he did pick up some similarities between the band's first two singles, "It’s the follow up to their sublime official debut single for Dirty Hit Records ‘There’s A Honey’ and to be honest it isn't a million miles away from that track, indeed there are points in the chorus that sound like it's actually going to morph into said debut".[6]

Heather Baron-Gracie addressed the select amount of criticism the band received on social media about the song similarities, she tweeted on 5 December 2017 through her official Twitter account, saying: "If our songs sound ‘similar’ it's because we’re the same band... lol".[7]

Year-end lists

Publication	Rank	Ref.
Marie Claire "Best Songs of 2017" (2017)	14	[8]

Music video

Television Romance Music Video

The music video for "Television Romance" was directed by Matty Healy from the UK band The 1975 in his directorial debut and Samuel Burgess-Johnson. It was released on 18 September 2017 and features the band performing the song in the living room of a residence at a tower block in Ashton-under-Lyne.[9] The set for the video was shot in the real owner's property, a 92-year-old woman's flat, with all her decorations and belongings on display.

Coup De Main Magazine praised the video, commenting how Baron-Gracie adds character to the piece the writer proclaimed; "Heather Baron-Gracie, queen of iconic eye-rolls - long may you reign." As of June 2019 the music video has been viewed over eight million times on the band's YouTube page.[10]

On 17 January it was announced that the music video was nominated for an NME Award for Best Video at the NME Awards 2018. The winner was revealed at the ceremony at London's O2 Academy Brixton on February 14 with the band losing out to The Big Moon with their video for "Sucker".[11]

Awards and nominations

Year	Organisation	Award	Work	Result	Ref.
2018	NME	NME Awards 2018: Best Video	Television Romance	Nominated	[12]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Pale Waves; all music is composed by Pale Waves.

Download, Streaming

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Television Romance"	3:25

7" (AA re-release)

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Television Romance"	3:25
2.	"There's a Honey"	3:47

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2017)	Peak position
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[13]	83
UK Physical Sales Chart (Official Charts Company)[14]	2
UK Vinyl Chart (Official Charts Company)[15]	2

• "Television Romance/There's a Honey re-released as a double A side Vinyl single on 10 November 2017.[16]

Release history

Country	Date	Format	Label	Catalog no.
Worldwide	16 August 2017	DL	Dirty Hit
	10 November 2017	LP		DH00258

References

1. "Television Romance Chart Positions" Official Charts Retrieved on 11 December 2017
2. "Television Romance release date" Amazon. Retrieved on 16 November 2017.
3. "Pale Waves Television Romance Vinyl" Dirty Hit Retrieved on 11 December 2017
4. "NME Review" NME 17 August 2017, Retrieved 14 December 2017.
5. "Clash Magazine Review" Clash magazine 17 August 2017, Retrieved 14 December 2017.
6. "The VPME review"The VPME retrieved 10 January 2017
7. Baron-Gracie, Heather (2017). "If our songs sound 'similar' it's because we're the same band... lol". Twitter. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
8. "Marie Clare Tracks of the Year 2017"marie claire 13 November 2017, retrieved 15 January 2018
9. "NME Matt Healy/Heather Baron-Gracie Interview", NME, 20 October 2017. Retrieved on 16 November 2017.
10. "Television Romance Video" Youtube Retrieved 12 December 2017.
11. "NME Awards" NME retrieved 17 January 2018
12. "NME Awards" NME retrieved 17 January 2018
13. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
14. "Chart Position" Official Charts Company Retrieved 12 December 2017
15. "Chart Position" Official Charts Company Retrieved 12 December 2017
16. "Pale Waves Singles"Pale Waves. Retrieved 27 November 2017.