Cue hilarious pun.....I love Women. Honk!
On their sophomore effort, Women have made the noisy bits noisier, and the melodic bits more melodious. They're a strange proposition, full of Beach Boys and Zombies style harmony, but there's a murkiness that comes from the clattering drums, slightly out-of-tune guitars and production that makes the record sound like it was recorded in a flooded basement.
Thanks to the heavy reverb, I have no idea what Patrick Flegel is singing about, and the dissonance, atypical song structures, and wonky time signatures lend themselves to an unsettling listen. Simply put, it's a perfect record for autumn and winter time (just look at that record cover!) so I've no idea why it was released in the heat of the summer.
Album opener "Can't See You" throws the listener into the unsettling winter world, but Public Strain moves quickly into a surprising cohesive stride with the groove of "Heat Distraction", as much of a pop song as Women have produced so far, before kicking into the garage stomp of "Narrow with the Hall".
The record takes a dark turn with the two-pronged attack of "Penal Colony" and "Bells", both contributing a kind of horror soundtrack quality, but ends on possibly the finest six minutes of recorded music of 2010.
"Eyesore" combines all of Women's best qualities (noise, complexity, melody), and ends with a fadeout of the year's best riff. It's like the band didn't want to stop playing, locked into the groove of the song as it takes off into the ether. It's pure unadulterated joy, and please, please listen here:
One of 2010's best records, hands down. Women - you gotta love 'em.
This was an incredibly difficult choice. I really wanted to put this record at number one just as a plea for the band not to split up after recent difficulties, but I decided to let the record speak for itself.
