Girls Names – Stains on Silence
If Girls Names relied more on their melodic instincts, Stains on Silence would be their best record yet
Girls Names’ journey has been one of transformation and progress. While the band’s debut album elicited an optimistic take on indie rock – now, it could easily be mistaken for a different group entirely – their sound quickly turned into something more refined on the enduring The New Life, a record that introduced a darker, more austere style that dabbled in despondent electronics. It was inevitable, then, the electronic elements would become a more pervasive theme on future LPs.
2015’s Arms Around a Vision was brazenly confrontational and ambitious in its approach to experimenting with different sounds and techniques. The epic breadth of that record is forgone here in favour of hard-hitting brevity and quality over quantity. Clocking in around 35 minutes, it gives you the incentive to hit the replay button the moment it finishes. This is a clever method as it definitely benefits from repeated listens: there are so many layers to get lost in, and over time Stains on Silence reveals itself to be a gorgeously wrought piece of modern post-punk and synth-pop.
Still, despite being informed by post-punk and electronic music’s past (the bassline on The Process, for example, subtly recalls PiL’s Poptones) Girls Names have created something that sounds like it belongs to now. They’ve incorporated the best elements from previous work (the dour pop of Karoline wouldn’t sound out of place on previous albums) with an entirely new vision, involving drum machines and programming throughout.
The slow-burning romance of 25 juxtaposes the claustrophobic disco-doom of Haus Proud and the occasional idiosyncrasies, such as the detuned background noises on A Moment and a Year, gives the record nuance and colour. Indeed, this is not always easy listening, but neither are some of the best records ever made. For all its uneasiness, there are moments that remind us of the band’s pop prowess – the title track is a sophisticated take on pop music: pop without pop’s insipid niceness. If Girls Names relied more on their melodic instincts, Stains on Silence would be their best record yet.
Listen to: Karoline, The Process, 25