To sum up girlfriend. as simply as possible would be as follows; they are the cool, queer band that the rest of the world is painfully willing Boygenius to be. This Dublin DIY quintet’s debut album, To Be Quiet goes to some scary places, some frightening because of how alien they are, some frightening because of just how familiar they feel.
The album is beautifully structured, with ambient opener Bury. This flowing seamlessly into album standout Child. This track sets the tone for the rest of the album, intimately uncomfortable. At times, you feel unsure whether this is something you’re even allowed to listen to. Then, the song explodes. It’s difficult to put any sort of genre classifier on To Be Quiet.
Tracks like Empty Room and Four Walls showcase the band’s emo roots, while Repent and Trust are a swing towards anthemic rock. The sparser arrangements of songs like magnificent closer Take work in the bands favour.
It feels like a moment of coming full circle, rather than “token-acoustic-guitar-song-on-the-rock-heavy-album-esque”.
For a band like girlfriend., who have built up an organic following through their visceral live shows and a handful of releases, putting out a debut album must be daunting. The band rises to this vulnerability by laying everything bare. In ripping off the plaster, girlfriend. allows themselves to be more than DIY rockers.
This is a very special release from a very special band. We’re all very lucky to have been trusted with it.
Words: Elle Kelleher
girlfriend. – To Be Quiet
[Self-Release]
