God Help the Girl
ALBUM TITLE: God Help the Girl
ARTIST: God Help the Girl
GENRE: Girl pop / Chamber pop / Indie
Do you ever wonder why albums named after their own bands are always inexplicably amazing? Does the phenomenon stem from the fact that it’s directly connected to their name and legacy? Much like the others, God Help the Girl’s album, God Help the Girl, is no exception. It is no coincidence that arguably the best song on the album is also called…”God Help the Girl”.
God Help the Girl is Stuart Murdoch’s musical film child. The album is paired along with the appropriately named movie, also God Help the Girl, but while the album is startlingly lovely and accurate, the film is un-inspiring to say the least. Unless you like indie films that begin with a mild tone and never stray from it, the movie is better skipped. Not only can the album stand alone without the film, but it even benefits without it. You may recognize Murdoch as the lead man of Belle and Sebastian, the band with literally a bajillion songs. Most of which are passable, some that are exhaustingly dull, and a few that are actual gems. Along with this project, Murdoch has a vast amount of other associated projects, but God Help the Girl is easily one of his best.
The main premise that Murdoch was pursuing by creating this musical act was to tell a story, a coming-of-age album told from the perspective of a young woman. The vocals are sung primarily by young female artists reminiscent of the doo-wop era during the 50’s and 60’s. Their voices are sweet, a little sultry, and particularly evocative of wide-eyed, eyeliner clad girls. A young Catherine Ireton fits this persona perfectly. If Murdoch is the musical father of this project, Ireton is its main star, the heroine of the album if you will. The album is a homage to British girl bands of the 60s, and Ireton feels like she belongs there better than anyone else. When Ireton croons, “God help the girl, she needs all the help she can get”, you can’t help but feel that she has been transported from a different time-period. While similar to the orchestral strings of Murdoch’s Belle and Sebastian, God Help The Girl brings a new flavor to the table in the form of a soft and gentle drama about teenage girls that is both intensely relatable and whimsically romanticized.
Personal Favorites:
God Help the Girl
If You Could Speak
I’ll Have to Dance With Cassie
A Down and Dusky Blonde
(included in Movie Soundtrack) The Psychiatrist Is In
TRACKLIST:
1. Act of the Apostle
2. God Help the Girl
3. Pretty Eve in the Tub
4. A Unified Theory
5. Hiding Neath my Umbrella
6. Funny Little Frog
7. If You Could Speak
8. Musician Please Take Heed
9. Perfection As A Hipster
10. Come Monday Night
11. Music Room Window
12. I Just Want Your Jeans
13. I’ll Have to Dance With Cassie
14. A Down and Dusky Blonde