Growing up in the Children Of God Cult, Girls’ frontman Christopher Owens was only allowed to listen to certain music. Besides the cult provided Christian regulated music he got to listen to, he also had a cassette of 50’s music, like  Roy Orbison and The Everly Brothers. These two influences are very evident from first listen,  along with fellow California group The Beach Boys. And I don’t mean that this is just another band attempting the splendor of Pet Sounds, it sounds more like the effortless Beach Boys. Guitars chiming in over cool little harmonies. If you’ve always wished to hear what it would have sounded like if Elvis Costello was born into the age of California coast pop, just take a listen.

Hellhole Ratrace comes in halfway through their debut album Album, which I picked up on my recent daytrip to Seattle. Ever since I heard this single three months ago, I couldn’t wait for the album to come out. This song is kind of a bluesy ballad, and somehow comes in at almost 7 minutes of enjoyment.