Girls are a California, Indie Rock duo. Releasing their second studio album entitled.. the above. They released an EP in 2010 which was met with some acclaim and some confusion as to what direction the band were taking. This being a highly anticipated album as 2009's Album, was widely accepted as a very strong debut.
You can instantly hear something different here, the band have recorded this in the studio so it seems. The production is far better quality, everything sounds full and together. The vocals have been layered and the drumming is exactly the same, so great!
Honey Bunny is the opening tracks and it sounds rather refined, it's a good song but it doesn't have anything gripping, much like the second track, Alex. This song has some very nice drumming and Bass, but the guitar sounds so mediocre and so does the vocals. it's really lacking that raw passion which the debut album had. This song has no aim or direction, it does pick up with a wailing guitar coming in after a little drum breakdown, but it's nothing special.
Die sounds like the band have dropped all the New Wave, Pop influences and have began emulating Wolfmother, it's just so predictable and uneventful. The song does pick up, but it has nothing which makes me want to dance, tap my legs, move my body or sway or whatever you want, it just doesn't have anything which makes them stand out.
This is just bland, it's so god damn bland it makes me want to cover my ears and throw my laptop out the window. The guitar work is predictable, the bass is so unimaginative and the drumming seems to have lost all characteristics which it had previously. The song Saying I Love You has to be one of the most boning songs I'll ever hear. I used that word, but it is.. it's bog standard shit.
They do have some good songs, many are very sad songs and extremely depressive. You cant help but feel some deep connection between the lead singer Christopher Owens vocals and the lyrics. My Ma is a much better track with a very eerie organ running through the middle.
Vomit has a dark sound which draws me to compare them to The Microphones at this point. The song is extremely dark and quiet with Christopher Owens vocals being a real highlight, before the mega kick and the harmonic organ which makes this track. The harmonic backing vocals go well with the Organ and the drumming sounds huge. This is a highlight on the album, it's a strong song which is separated from some of the weaker tracks on the album.
Just A Song is very Folk like at the beginning it seems very tropical and warm, but the incoming vocals and bass give it that dark feel again. I'm not sure what to make of the singing because it sounds very quiet and talkative rather than a full vocal effort. It's clear the material is much darker than previous, but the chord progressions are so predictable and just bland that it's hard to get into.
When I first played Magic, i instantly thought of Status Quo for some reason, it sounds remarkably like something they would release. The guitar work and lack of reverb is welcomed with open arms here. The drumming is steady and so is the song structure, its more of a brighter song and the music also reflects just that.
The remaining tracks have the same style as the rest of the album, they're not as strong, but they do manage to give something different musically. These are very minimal and have a bigger focus on the song writing than the previous tracks. Songs like Love Like A River sticks out, it's like a 50's Pop song in style something which surprises me, it's very poppy. The closer, Jamie Marie, has a nice sound to it. It has some good vocals and the music is very sparse and again.. Haunting. The sound is very melancholy and the structure is different to the material that I have heard so far on the album. It sums up Father, Son, Holy Ghost well.
~Eddie
7.4
