Toronto’s Little Girls play dark, rolling, muddy pop songs. The songs are built around very simple phrases and melodies, with distorted and muffled vocals and relentless drum beats - and they are generally catchy tunes. While Joy Division comparisons are unavoidable with the veritable wellspring of dark and reverb-y post-punk bands that seem to be popping up everywhere, Little Girls explicitly offer allegiance to their forbearers. Bass lines will remind you of nothing but Joy Division’s Disorder, and guitar melodies almost sing Love Will Tear Us Apart, but it is in the loyalty to ‘80s post-punk that Little Girls come into their own, revitalizing and re-imagining gritty simple rock, with a wall-of-sound fullness. Little Girls move to defy their inherited angst though, and replace it with almost optimistic and naïve vocal melody, floating just above the sinister bass-drum repetitions. Songs Salt Swimmers and Youth Tunes are standout tracks.

Published in Volume 64, Number 9 of The Uniter (October 29, 2009)