As every boring auntie will tell you, the grass is always greener on the other side. It’s such a bland notion that even Scottish drudge-poppers Travis used it as the base of a chorus for their single ‘Side’. But whilst Manchester’s figurative lawn is over growing with talented, exciting and innovative new acts and London seems to be taking the piss with how many amazing new bands it can bang out each week, the fact is that New York still seems to outdo them both with ease. Of course, the fact that a massive stretch of water separates us can’t help the yearning, but each MySpace trawl or last.fm scouring session throws up at least 2 brilliant bands coming out of the city.
The Girls at Dawn are a female three piece, and you probably don’t need telling where they’re based. Their sound is typically lo-fi pop, with vocal harmonies and lazy guitar work with the odd tambourine thrown in for good measure, there’s more than a shade of Best Coast to their work. The trio’s melodies are haunting, held together immaculately by an undercurrent of 60’s doo-wah pop. There’s more than a passing likeness to The Vivian Girls’ earlier work, which can never be a bad thing, and comparisons are both obvious and true.
As ever, you can tell a decent band by which record labels they court, and The Girls at dawn could hardly be seen in better company. Captured Tracks (who’ve put out stuff by Beach Fossils, Thee Oh Sees, Ganglians and Dum Dum girls amongst others) have already released an EP by the band, Hozac (Smith Westerns, Woven Bones) have done a 7″ and Tic Tac Totally (So Cow, Wavves) have something coming up with them. Their current gig commitments don’t see them leaving New York State, but the strength of their current output suggests that this might not long be the case.
The Girls at Dawn – Tomorrow will be Yesterday
The Girls at Dawn – Every Night (live)
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