Girls

Wikipedia:

Girls is an indie rock band from San Francisco, California. The band comprises two key members—Christopher Owens, the main writer and lead singer, and Chet "JR" White, who plays bass and produces. Owens is a former member of the Children of God cult. The New York Times compared the band's sound to Elvis Costello, The Beach Boys and Buddy Holly.

History

Owens was born into the fundamentalist cult Children of God, but absconded at 16 from their community in Slovenia to Amarillo, Texas. It took him years of exploring common technology, hardcore punk and nihilism, among other things, to cope in mainstream society. Upon arriving in San Francisco, Owens met White, a Bay Area native who was raised in Santa Cruz, California. White began recording bands in his parents' garage. Upon meeting, the two developed a strong bond and interest in similar music, as well as a shared background in Punk/Hardcore music. Shortly thereafter Owens and White started recording what was to later be their debut album, titled Album.

A former member of the band Holy Shit with Ariel Pink and Matt Fishbeck, in an interview with Exclaim! magazine, Owens related much of how being part of the Children of God cult informed his childhood and his music. While there, he was not allowed to listen to music from outside the group, but was allowed to watch movies from which he absorbed music like Queen and Guns N' Roses. Girls' Album is an "overflow of expression", as Owens could do whatever he liked on the album without worry for boundaries.

The band released their second full length album Father, Son, Holy Ghost on September 9, 2011 in UK/Europe and on September 13 in the USA. On July 20, 2011, they released "Vomit" from their upcoming album as a free download. This was followed by a video of the same song in August. "Honey Bunny" was the second cut off the record. On November 7, 2011, Girls announced a standalone single, "Lawrence," released on a heart-shaped vinyl on November 28, 2011. The song was written as a gift to Felt lead singer Lawrence Hayward.

Besides its two official members the band has recorded and/or toured with: Ryan William Lynch, Garett Godard, Matthew Kallman, Darren Weiss, Dan Eisenberg, John Anderson.

Critical acclaim

Pitchfork Media rated their single "Hellhole Ratrace" at 383 of the top 500 songs of the 2000s. Their 2009 debut album Album received a rating of 9.1/10 and was rated the 10th best album of 2009 by Pitchfork. In 2010, their EP Broken Dreams Club was rated the 22nd best album of the year by Pitchfork. In 2011, "Vomit" and "Honey Bunny", the first and second single from the band's second album, received "Best New Music" designations from Pitchfork. Their newest album, Father, Son, Holy Ghost has received much acclaim with Pitchfork rating it a 9.3 and has been ranked number five on their Top 50 Albums of 2011 list.

Touring

The band toured Europe and returned to the U.S. in late 2009 for a national headlining tour. They are known for the use of drugs whilst making their first album, though in a 2009 interview with State magazine lead singer Owens suggested this is now a more occasional indulgence. More recently, in an interview with Pitchfork Media Owens outlined his method of touring without drugs, spending several days withdrawing from the opiate addiction that he struggles with all other times. The group played the ATP New York 2010 music festival in Monticello, New York in September 2010. Girls will begin touring again on 3 September 2011, playing across the USA, Canada, Japan, Singapore, Australia, UK, and Europe.