Goat Girl - Goat Girl

Rating:

Goat Girl’s debut is not only accomplished, but special.

'Album' of 'the Week'

Goat Girl. Two words that have been hot on the lips of the music tipsters since their very first Rough Trade single ‘Country Sleaze’. The South London four-piece have been very much a hype band since they announced their presence, and with the positive reception that subsequent singles ‘Crow Cries’, ‘Cracker Drool’ and ‘The Man’ received, the hype train has not slowed down. So of course, the obvious route for the quartet to go would be to release a solid debut of 12 three-minute songs that encompassed their singles to date. Delightfully, however, ‘Goat Girl’ is simply not that.

‘Goat Girl’ is a maniacal record, a journey through muddied waters far from your homely idea of London’s concrete thoroughfare. The murky rockabilly of lead single ‘Cracker Drool’ and the slackjaw rock‘n’roll of ‘Country Sleaze’ only give away a small quotient of their sound. Tracks like the nightmarish skit ‘A Swamp Dog’s Tale’ and the higgledy-piggledy ‘The Man With No Heart or Brain’ indicate that this is a band with a broad sonic palette and interests far beyond just thrashing six-stringed instruments to quell boredom, as they effortlessly create their own urban, dystopic spaghetti western world throughout.

On top of the seamless songwriting and catchy melodies that frequent the band’s lyrics, Goat Girl’s music is full of character. And full of characters, for that matter. One look at the tracklisting will introduce you to such bizarro characters as ‘Cracker Drool’, ‘Viper Fish’ and ‘The Man With No Heart or Brain’, and such creations are brought to life in Clottie Cream’s surly voice atop sleazy garage rock and haunting vocal harmonies. The ease at which a whole other world is created, and the amount of catchy and effortlessly cool melodies on the way, ensure that Goat Girl’s debut is not only accomplished, but special. Cal Cashin