girlhouse - the girlhouse EP
On Friday, girlhouse released her long awaited debut EP. This EP is dreamy and well produced, like taking bedroom pop to the next level and I love it. I get a clear image of driving at night when listening to this EP, that’s what I kept coming back to while listening to the songs.
girlhouse is the solo project of Lauren Luiz who is known for her acting roles in Grimm, Birds of Neptune and Broadway show ‘Spring Awakening’, as well as her band Wild. However girlhouse sees Luiz being more introspective than ever. Talking to Atwood Magazine, Luiz details the themes of this EP “This EP follows my story of landing in LA and finding out exactly how ignorant I was to the real world, whether that be relationships, men in general, career, sex, friendships, or battling mental illness and dealing with trauma, it all felt new to me.”
This EP was one that had me stunned after I first listened to it, I just wanted to put in on repeat. ‘knuckle tattoo’ was the first song I’d heard from the EP a few months ago and I instantly fell in love with the sound of this project and where it could be heading. It’s guitar music with driving baselines and incredible vocal performances, giving it this dreamy feel as if you’re being transported to another place, while also being emotional and introspective with lyrics that catch you and hit you in all the right ways.
Opening song ‘pretty girl in la’ is one that had me hooked instantly. The chorus is catchy and will get stuck in your head, it’s probably one of the more approachable songs on the EP, but fitting with the narrative, this is where the story starts. ‘the fatalist’ however is probably my favourite song from the EP. The production here is great and I really love the layers to the chorus. It’s heart-wrenching lyrically, almost hauntingly so, but the story keeps me hanging on and wanting more.
‘loaded gun’ is a more upbeat song musically but lyrically it still deals with themes of trauma and abuse. Luiz explained the track to Wonderland Magazine “I feel like forgiving people from your past for abuse or neglect that happened to you when you were young and vulnerable is so important to start forgiving yourself, this song is a moment when I recognised inherited bad behaviour and wanting to take control of my future.” It’s a song that is heavily inspired by artists such as Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus, as is the EP, but I feel it’s very prominent here.
This EP is definitely one that you should all give a listen, I can’t get enough of it at the moment. I am so happy I stumbled across girlhouse a few months back as this EP is very much one that I will have on repeat at night time through the summer. It reminds me of Holly Humberstone’s EP from last year, but with more atmospherics. I’d really recommended giving it a listen if you are a fan of Pheobe Bridgers, Holly Humberstone or Lord Huron.
Thanks for reading, until next time…
Listen to the girlhouse EP on Spotify here.
Follow girlhouse on Instagram here.
All After Midnight links here.