Girls has made one of my favorite records of 2011. To be honest, I'm kind of surprised. At first listen, I didn't think Father, Son, Holy Ghost could touch their debut album, Album. Too polished, not enough of the ramshackle charm that was so appealing about that first record. Nothing about this record says "knocked out in the studio." However, even though the loose vibe of Album may be not be as present here, there are truly well-crafted, well-thought out songs on this record. And while the wider variation in sound may put off some listeners, it's certainly not like an Enya/Black Sabbath mixtape. So once I got over how different this record sounds from what I expected and gave it a solid listen, I realized how brilliant most of this record is.
I wanna cover the whole album, but let me just talk about the song "Vomit" for a second. I love it. A lot. It came out as a single before the record was released and I think it's pretty clear why. To create a buzz about an upcoming record you need a stunner and this song is just that. It starts off pretty intimate, glimpsing the messy, crazy thoughts of a lonely, lovesick man. A gently played guitar and spare drums give way just for a moment to a huge chorus; "Looking for love" gets half-moaned, half sung while drum hits and organ chords momentarily raise the volume. Dude sounds depressed maybe desperate. Slowly the temperature of the song rises with elements of each previous section staying in the mix, building and changing the tone. Like Voltron lions forming a single, beast-slaying song, it all comes together at the end and the forces of good triumph over evil. "Come into my heart" gets repeated at the end, lifted on the wings of gospel background vocals. The absence of love felt at the beginning seems replaced by a glimmer what the future could hold. It almost sounds hopeful. Damn.
And the rest of the album is great, too. It opens up with an old-school, rock n' roll hip-shaker called "Honey Bunny." It's a sunny and catchy way to get things going, not terribly different than previous Girls material. Two songs later, it's a completely different vibe. "Die" is a distortion-heavy stomper with heavy, 70s-style guitar licks repeated until it goes all wonderfully acoustic at the end. Tracks like "Just a Song" and "Saying I Love You" have an upbeat tune coupled with patented lovelorn lyrics typical of Chris Owens. The second half of the record might be a little plodding for some folks, but I think it's truly beautiful. The organ that closes out "Jamie Marie" and the background vocals on "Love Like a River" are pretty amazing.
Here's a couple of streams. Then I encourage you to watch some live videos after the jump.
Vomit
Honey Bunny
Saying I Love You
Jamie Marie
"My Ma," at the Bowery Ballroom, NYC
"Vomit"
"Forgiveness"
and
"Jamie Marie" performed at the Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA
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