Sea Girls are one of the *hottest* bands right now and I have been waiting (along with the rest of their fanbase) for their debut album for so long!
The indie-rock band from the UK have been putting great music out into the world for years and have just got around to releasing a full-album: Open Up Your Head. Released under Polydor on 14 August, I had the privilege to receive the pre-release and have spent every waking hour listening to it.
Open Up Your Head is a collection of Sea Girls best songs yet, opening with never-heard-before, Transparent. They really know how to kick off an album, this is definitely one of my personal favourites. Tackling the longing for an ex that had a change of heart, the rawness of the lyrics really make the song.
Transparent is followed by All I Want to Hear You Say, one of their previous singles, which continues the story with lyrics 'how you doin'?' and 'ain't easy to forget you'.
They don't stop there with the singles - Sea Girls have been crafting this album for years. Other hits of theirs that appear on the album include:
- Do You Really Want to Know? - an upbeat track that you can dance to without a care in the world;
- Call Me Out - a more dramatic track that I caught live on their 2018 tour (the crowd's energy was insane during this song!);
- Closer - rammed packed with guitar solos and a tempo that suggests a sense of urgency which match up to the lyrical tension;
- Ready For More - 'you better get ready for more' is definitely one way to describe the album at this point;
- Violet - this more recent release has made it into my top 5 favourite songs from Sea Girls;
- Damage Done - a deeper song lyrically and definitely one to sing at the top of your lungs.
The bands more recent single, Forever, also debuts on Open Up Your Head. This is more of a festival-ready song and is pouring with emotion from when the band finally reunited after the recent lockdown. Lead singer, Henry says, "Playing ‘Forever feels incredible. It kinda carries you and feels super important and I love singing that last line – ‘I'm never gonna live forever and I don't want to! One of the first times we played it was in Manchester, and I remember singing the chorus standing on a speaker stack just thinking in that moment: we’re in the best band in the world. It’s pretty cool when a song makes you feel like that”.
I'm gutted that I won't be catching Sea Girls live on their tour through November and January! This album is going to sound absolutely incredible live!
Other unheard tracks that made the album were:
- Lie To Me - a softer track that shows off Henry's unique vocals;
- Weight In Gold - one of the golden nuggets from this album, it's a much brighter song backed by a piano rather than the bands signature dirty guitar vibe;
- Shake - a track with filled with pure headbanging energy but when you delve a bit deeper than the sound, has a lot more emotion behind it.
- You Over Anyone - this is one of the most stripped back songs I have heard from Sea Girls. Echoy vocals support the undying love for someone portrayed in the lyrics.
- Moving On - the album finishes with this song and it's definitely a good way to end it!
This album is a collection of Sea Girls best songs yet. They really own festivals as a band and have made the perfect album to just take them over. I'm going to announce Sea Girls as the crowing kings of festival season (fingers crossed we'll be back on the fields dancing to their music next summer!).
If there's any three songs that you must listen to on Open Up Your Head it should be:
- Transparent;
- Shake;
- and Weight In Gold.
Listen to Open Up Your Head:
Read my 2018 live review and interview with Sea Girls here.
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