Band Wars--Girls vs. the Men

Girls, Father, Son, Holy Ghost

The Men, Open Your Heart

This is the first-round matchup that I had been looking forward to.

The overwhelming sense you'll get from Girls' Father, Son, Holy Ghost is that you've heard these songs before.  From '50s pop song arrangements to Pink Floyd psychedelic freakouts to just about anything else you can imagine, Girls does it on this album.  The one constant in this variety of tunes is the lead singer's mellow, sometimes whispery, voice.  Of all the albums in this competition, this one is as retro as they come.

Here's "Vomit"

The Men's Open Your Heart is by far the hardest rocker of the albums I've listened to so far.  Reviewers have compared the Men to Foo Fighters and Led Zeppelin.  The first band that comes to mind for me is Sonic Youth.  The album starts with shouted lyrics and pounding guitar.  After all of the earnest, confessional albums that I've listened to in the last week, I enjoyed how much fun these guys are having.  The mid-album 7-minute rocker "Oscillation" sounds like it's being sung by a zombie.  Awesome.  I feel guilty enjoying this album as much as I do, because I think it's geared towards high school kids.  Sadly, that's true for more of my music than I'd like to admit.  Thankfully, the cascade of drums and guitars relax long enough for "Candy," Open Your Heart's best track (and one unlike any other on the album).

"Candy"

Both albums are excellent.  I'm choosing The Men to go on to the next round, which basically means that Father, Son, Holy Ghost is far and away the best loser in the competition so far.  If the luck of the draw had pitted Girls against any of the other losers--and some of the winners--Girls would be advancing to the next round.  I also suspect it is one of the likeliest albums that I'll listen to regularly.

We are quickly approaching the end of round one.  Should be done tomorrow.  Here's how it looks: