September Girls: Cursing the Sea

All-female September Girls were formed out of the ashes of various Irish bands (including Talulah Does the Hula,The Chalets, and Neosupervital). The quintet's debut album is as fine a noise pop document as you'll hear this year. Cursing the Sea takes a few songs to find its feet (and soul), but from fourth song (Heartbeats) onwards, the record locks into its own specific groove and doesn't allow you an inch either way. If the music is familiar, it's only because of the band's templates (Jesus & Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine, pop-oriented PiL, The Ramones), which are far grittier than lazy, wide-of-the- mark comparisons to The Bangles. (Women with guitars don't always equal The Bangles, you know). Another on-point feature of September Girls are their lyrics, which mostly avoid clichés by focusing on female-relevant topics. Sister and the title track deserve special mention here. septembergirls.tumblr.com
Download: Heartbeats, Sister