Girls, Make a Beautiful Album.

Album, by Girls, is a sad, but painfully beautiful, lo-fi, California pop album. It has the sunshine of the Beach Boys, the experiments of Jesus and Mary Chain, and the voice of Elvis Costello. Album’s mood is consistent throughout. The lyrics, sounds and messages vary from track to track or line to line. Do these boys like girls, love them, or hate them? Are they cheerful, melancholy, hurt, angry, hopeful?

Each song offers a different point of view. Even individual songs contain a mishmash of emotion. In the popped out “Lust for Life,” singer-song writer, Christopher Owens reveals jealousy, followed by anger and disappointment and then perhaps hope, “Oh, I wish I had a boyfriend, I wish I had a loving man in my life. I wish I had a father, maybe then I would of turned out right but now I’m just crazy, and totally mad. yeah I’m just crazy and fucked in the head. Maybe if I really tried with all of my heart then I could make a friend and start a love with you.”

The track “Headache” offers a dark and creepy melody, with lyrics that walk a fine line between beautifully romantic and scary stalker. Then, a song like “Hellhole Retrace” makes your heart ache with the simple lyrics of someone who’s been wronged, “I got a sad song in my sweet heart.”

The pretty melodies on Album are kissed with just enough pain to remind you that the duo that makes up Girls, have some serious life experience.

Owens was raised by his mother under the highly conterversal Children of God Cult. They were always on the road, in and out of various countries while his mother prostituted herself. Eventually Owens was able to escape to Texas where he joined the Punk scene and discovered the power of drugs. Then, like a true “Cinderella Story,” he was rescued by Stanley Marsh 3, a Texas artist and millionaire, who cleaned him up, gave him a job, a place to stay and became a stable father figure to Owens.

In a interview with the UK’s Guardian, Owens and bassist/producer, Chet ”Jr.” White, admit and almost flaunt that drugs, especially pills, were vital to the making of, Album. Whatever their stranger-than-fiction backgrounds may be, they succeed in making a stunningly melodic, sunset, surf album.

Girls are playing Kung Ku Necktie on November 4.