Offering a reflection of a world often hard to glimpse, Our Girl have arrived with thoughtful lyrics, shimmering guitars and perhaps even the occasional personalised yoga mat.
Having formed officially in Brighton back in 2014, Our Girl have spent the last four years honing and perfecting their craft as a contemplative yet progressive entity of sound.
Made up of guitarist/vocalist Soph Nathan, bassist Josh Tyler and drummer Lauren Wilson, this has culminated with their debut album ‘Stranger Today’; a record that encapsulates their journey and arrives at a time that couldn’t be more perfect – “the songs were ready to be recorded,” Soph notes.
Spending just over twelve days in the studio, the band recruited the talents of producer/composer/general ‘guitar genius’ Bill Ryder-Jones as an honouree fourth member and his presence played an important part in the overall shaping of the album, his style and sound being noticeable on a number of tracks.
This is clear on songs such as ‘Josephine’, where an outro, originally intended to be relatively short, evolved into a three-minute soundscape, with Bill and the band layering guitars upon guitars to create an ending fitting of its construction.
Similarly, it was by exploring these avenues that Our Girl were able to apply the finishing touches to their unique style. Sleeping in the studio each night, the focus was always there and allowed the band to take an organic approach to the recording process, not to mention being able to maintain a constant ‘Our Girl Zone’.
Taking off on a headline tour in October, the band are travelling around the UK to showcase the new album, with a few tracks - in particular, ‘Sub Rosa’ and ‘I Wish It Was Sunday’ - getting their first proper run out.
This is in contrast to others on the album with some dating back to the band’s formation in 2014. One of these is the song ‘Our Girl’ which, along with being the first thing they ever played together as a trio, has gone on to become an almost centrepiece to the band, opening not only the album but also a number of their shows.
A feeling of togetherness spreads throughout the stories they recall, whether it’s simply deciding on a name for the band and album, all the way to getting stuck in a snowstorm on tour (“We thought we were going to die in Bradford!”). Although Josh and Soph both have commitments in other bands (Breathe Panel and The Big Moon respectively), it is clear that it hasn’t affected the group’s relationship.
Nevertheless, Our Girl still make an effort to support each other in their various side projects, embracing the creativity they acquire in their different roles.
For the time being though, Our Girl have more important things to focus on, one being the ‘slightly’ important deal of releasing their debut album out into the world.
In typical Our Girl fashion, the three of them actually held a listening party for the record with the event being a strictly invite-only occasion limited exclusively to, erm, individuals lucky enough to be in Our Girl.
“We drank some prosecco, ate some snacks – it was a nice evening,” Lauren says.
Soph agrees: “I’m so happy we’re at the point we are now, I just feel like, ‘Yeah c’mon, I’m ready!’”
This is an attitude that is shared throughout the band and as ‘Stranger Today’ begins to find itself in the hands of a whole new wave of fans, it won’t be long before the name ‘Our Girl’ is one that’s most commonly associated with their music and not with the TV show of the same name…
Whether or not Our Girl make the crossover to the world of TV is yet to be seen, however like many other bands releasing their debut album, talk of new music is hard to avoid - not that it phases them.
As the band imagine what this would be like, the conversation moves on to the endless possibilities of merchandise with the ideas not merely being limited to a jazz-synth inspired tour.
Lauren lights up at the idea . “Matches are handy as well – I need some at the moment!”
Soph laughs: “We’ll have to make some just for you then.”
It’s clear by this stage that a wave of inspiration has completely consumed Our Girl.
“We could have yoga mats with our faces on them!” Lauren muses.
While this may be a rather niche audience for them to aim for, there is with no doubt a ready-made market for Our Girl themselves, and it is one that is growing bigger every day.
Taken from the September issue of Dork. Order a copy below. Our Girl’s debut album ‘Stranger Today’ is out 17th August.
Words: Dominic Allum
As for a Big Moon, Our Girl, Breathe Panel joint tour, we may have to wait a bit longer. “Maybe one day,” Josh teases.
For the time being though, Our Girl have more important things to focus on, one being the ‘slightly’ important deal of releasing their debut album out into the world.
In typical Our Girl fashion, the three of them actually held a listening party for the record with the event being a strictly invite-only occasion limited exclusively to, erm, individuals lucky enough to be in Our Girl.
“We drank some prosecco, ate some snacks – it was a nice evening,” Lauren says.
Soph agrees: “I’m so happy we’re at the point we are now, I just feel like, ‘Yeah c’mon, I’m ready!’”
This is an attitude that is shared throughout the band and as ‘Stranger Today’ begins to find itself in the hands of a whole new wave of fans, it won’t be long before the name ‘Our Girl’ is one that’s most commonly associated with their music and not with the TV show of the same name…
Whether or not Our Girl make the crossover to the world of TV is yet to be seen, however like many other bands releasing their debut album, talk of new music is hard to avoid - not that it phases them.
As the band imagine what this would be like, the conversation moves on to the endless possibilities of merchandise with the ideas not merely being limited to a jazz-synth inspired tour.
Lauren lights up at the idea . “Matches are handy as well – I need some at the moment!”
Soph laughs: “We’ll have to make some just for you then.”
It’s clear by this stage that a wave of inspiration has completely consumed Our Girl.
“We could have yoga mats with our faces on them!” Lauren muses.
While this may be a rather niche audience for them to aim for, there is with no doubt a ready-made market for Our Girl themselves, and it is one that is growing bigger every day.
Taken from the September issue of Dork. Order a copy below. Our Girl’s debut album ‘Stranger Today’ is out 17th August.
