Among a certain, bookish crowd of indie snobs, there is no band in the past twenty years better than Belle & Sebastian (full disclosure: I belong to this crowd). Backed by delicate chamber pop arrangements from an ever-changing cast of supporting musicians, Murdoch specializes in intimate character studies, usually involving religion or lust (or some combination of the two—see his signature tune, “The State I Am In”).
God Help the Girl, released in June of this year, is Murdoch’s first full-length endeavour outside of his usual group. It’s actually a soundtrack to a planned musical film about a reclusive girl named Eve who develops an eating disorder before seeking comfort in an array of supporting characters (each voiced by a different singer). As I discussed a few months ago, it’s an intriguing listen, but lacks the same personality that Murdoch has always achieved so effortlessly with Belle & Sebastian.
Stills is an five-song EP from the same project, and despite the occasional moment of brilliance, it suffers from many of the same problems that hamper the full-length. The shortcomings are mostly in the lyrics; too often, the songs feel like narrative vehicles, with blunt lyrics that sacrifice subtlety and poetry in favour of clarity. The Ireton-fronted “I’m in Love with the City” features a gorgeous scaling melody, but its tale of unrequited romance falls flat with clunky lines like “If he knew how I felt it would spoil any chance I had.”
Where the EP succeeds is in its arrangements, which vary between brazen cabaret pop and Latin-infused folk. The Murdoch-sung “He’s a Loving Kind of Boy” features vigorous acoustic strumming and mariachi trumpet solos, while “Baby’s Just Waiting” is a slinky piano ballad set against a bed of sweeping strings and purring woodwinds. Best of all is the title track, with Asya of Smoosh providing fragile, double-tracked vocals over a gentle arrangement that recalls “Fox in the Snow” (from B&S’s If You’re Feeling Sinister).
Hopefully, God Help the Girl is just a temporary diversion, something to occupy Murdoch until the next Belle & Sebastian album. Still anything from Murdoch is better than nothing, and with so little news coming out of the Belle & Sebastian camp these days, we should probably feel lucky to have a few more songs to help fill the void.
Stills is available now on iTunes.
God Help the Girl, released in June of this year, is Murdoch’s first full-length endeavour outside of his usual group. It’s actually a soundtrack to a planned musical film about a reclusive girl named Eve who develops an eating disorder before seeking comfort in an array of supporting characters (each voiced by a different singer). As I discussed a few months ago, it’s an intriguing listen, but lacks the same personality that Murdoch has always achieved so effortlessly with Belle & Sebastian.
Stills is an five-song EP from the same project, and despite the occasional moment of brilliance, it suffers from many of the same problems that hamper the full-length. The shortcomings are mostly in the lyrics; too often, the songs feel like narrative vehicles, with blunt lyrics that sacrifice subtlety and poetry in favour of clarity. The Ireton-fronted “I’m in Love with the City” features a gorgeous scaling melody, but its tale of unrequited romance falls flat with clunky lines like “If he knew how I felt it would spoil any chance I had.”
Where the EP succeeds is in its arrangements, which vary between brazen cabaret pop and Latin-infused folk. The Murdoch-sung “He’s a Loving Kind of Boy” features vigorous acoustic strumming and mariachi trumpet solos, while “Baby’s Just Waiting” is a slinky piano ballad set against a bed of sweeping strings and purring woodwinds. Best of all is the title track, with Asya of Smoosh providing fragile, double-tracked vocals over a gentle arrangement that recalls “Fox in the Snow” (from B&S’s If You’re Feeling Sinister).
Hopefully, God Help the Girl is just a temporary diversion, something to occupy Murdoch until the next Belle & Sebastian album. Still anything from Murdoch is better than nothing, and with so little news coming out of the Belle & Sebastian camp these days, we should probably feel lucky to have a few more songs to help fill the void.
Stills is available now on iTunes.
