girlfriends - girlfriends
Girlfriends
Girlfriends
Release Date: October 23rd, 2020
Genre: Pop Punk
Label: Big Noise
Only a couple of years ago, my peers and I asked ourselves: what will the next wave of pop-punk look and sound like? Our imaginations would run wild. As 2020 has unfolded, it’s become clear that this new iteration of the genre is falling heavily in favor of solo artists and duos, while simultaneously pulling from the pop-punk stylings of the early 2000s and blending it with modern pop. As of recently Machine Gun Kelly has been leading the charge with his recently released rapper-turned-rockstar effort Tickets To My Downfall, but girlfriends are here to prove that they’re deserving of your attention as well.
Their self-titled debut is a 14-track half-hour romp that laces together pop stylings with the rock edge of latter Blink-182 and Good Charlotte (the band did work with renowned producer John Feldmann though, so the influence make sense.) The duo, comprised of Travis Mills (y’all remember T. Mills, yes?) and drummer Nick Gross, ambitiously work to cross genres while mixing heartfelt lines with tongue-in-cheek lyrics (reference tracks like “Sugar On Her Lips” and “Eyes Wide Shut” to hear more). Tracks like “California” provide for a great time (the song has amassed over 1 million streams as of the publication of this review), and “2am” (featuring DeathbyRomy) is a standout track with dueling vocals and lightheartedness, and “We’re All Fucked Up” serves as the perfect closer.
While a few moments on the album are slower than others, girlfriends is successful at setting out what it wants to do: keep the party going. The Used’s Bert McCracken and Blink-182’s Travis Barker even drop in for a minute (“Over My Head” features McCracken, while “Where Were You” features Barker.) What more could you ask for from music like this? It’s upbeat pop-rock, at its finest.
girlfriends
Twitter: @girlfriendsxo
Instagram.com: @girlfriends
