Girls @ Sneaky Pete’s, 14 Oct

Daniel Johnston songs have been covered by everyone from Beck to The Twilight Sad, but when Girls end their set with True Love Will Find You In The End, such is the quivering tone of Christopher Owens’ voice that it sounds like it could have been written for him. Playing to a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd in Sneaky Pete’s, the San Franciscan duo (joined by an extra drummer and guitarist) open on the bittersweet Lust For Life, the calling card for that innocent, redemptive mood Owens evokes. The set that follows is a rough interpretation of their debut Album, with a new song (referred to as Heartbreak, aptly) thrown in midway. The diminutive Owens is the focal point, pouring years of personal pain and yearning into every word. But just as Johnston is an artist who deserves a setting where unflinching attention is possible, you feel that perhaps a dark, jostling bar isn’t the best setting to appreciate such a wistful style of rock. [Nick Mitchell]