Father, Son, Holy Ghost (album)
Encyclopedia
Father, Son, Holy Ghost is the second album by the indie rock band Girls
, released September 13, 2011 on True Panther Sounds
in the United States, September 12, 2011 on Fantasytrashcan/Turnstile in Europe, September 7, 2011 in Japan on Fantasytrashcan/Turnstile and September 14 in Mexico on Arts & Crafts México
. The album peaked at #37 on the Billboard 200
and has received generally positive reviews.
on True Panther Sounds
' website in early July, 2011. The album was later announced on July 7, 2011.
The album's first single, "Vomit," was released as a MP3 download on July 20, 2011. A music video for "Vomit," which featured lead singer Christopher Owens driving on a city street in a 1966 Ford Mustang
, was later released on August 8, 2011. A second single, "Honey Bunny," premiered August 23, 2011 on All Songs Considered
. A music video for "Honey Bunny," which featured Christopher Owens' girlfriend and was inspired by the video for Ariel Pink
's "Life in L.A.", premiered on the New York Times website on September 20, 2011. The album was streamed in its entirety on The Guardian
on September 6, 2011.
Father, Son, Holy Ghost is the first Girls album to feature drummer Darren Weiss, keyboardist Dan Eisenberg and guitarist John Anderson; Girls first album
was previously a collaboration between lead singer Christopher Owens and JR White. The album was recorded in San Francisco's Golden Gate Studios and Los Angeles' The Sound Factory
. Doug Boehm
produced the album.
In an interview with Spin
, Owens said the album's title
was chosen to reflect music's spiritual quality.
and 1970s
. Bands that influenced the album's sound included Deep Purple
, Elvis Costello
, Paul Simon
, Beach Boys and Pink Floyd
. Several writers related Father, Son, Holy Ghost to a larger trend of indie artists reaching back to past decades for inspiration.
With regards to individual tracks, critics compared the album's opening track "Honey Bunny" to surf rock. The track "Die" is a heavy metal
song and was influenced by Fleetwood Mac
's "Oh Well
." Christopher Owens called the album's final track, "Jamie Marie," a Randy Newman
song.
"Vomit" and "Jamie Marie" were both written about Owens' ex girlfriends. The title for "Vomit" was inspired by the Book of Proverbs
aphorism As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly
. On the song's subject matter, Owens said: "When I’m writing, 'I’m running around looking for you baby,' I literally would be running around, sometimes at night, going to certain bars I know my girlfriend was going to, seeing if she was there." "Jamie Marie" was about a girlfriend Owens left behind in Amarillo, Texas
when he moved to San Francisco.
, the album has a score of 79 out of 100, indicating "Generally favorable reviews."
Zachary Houle of Popmatters
thought the album was superior to Album
, writing "Unlike past Girls’ outings, Father, Son, Holy Ghost is bracingly immediate, a collection of songs that don’t have to grow on you—songs that are fully realized and lovable at first blush." Consequence of Sound
's Möhammad Choudhery also thought the Father, Son, Holy Ghost was better than the band's debut album, writing "And so for a whole lot more reasons – some old, some new – Father, Son, Holy Ghost outdoes its forebears in, for the second straight time, about every way imaginable. In place of Album‘s sometimes hard-to-swallow, wallowing self-pity, Holy Ghost is streaked with a buoyant, some might call it spiritual, sense of self-consciousness, while maintaining the endearing timidity." Some reviewers praised Girls for sounding original despite being heavily influenced by music from previous decades. Paste
's Stephen Deusner declared "In that regard, this album not only surpasses its predecessor but raises the bar for any band, indie or otherwise, mining the past for inspiration." Pitchfork Media
's Mark Richardson gave the album a Best New Music designation, writing "Since the retirement of LCD Soundsystem
, San Francisco's Girls [...] just might be the band best making use of the current situation. Their music pilfers from the past without shame but also manages to sound like no one else." Richardson continued: "This lyrical simplicity shouldn't obscure the fact that these are sharply constructed songs that take unusual turns."
Allmusic's Jason Lymangrover, on the other hand, criticized Father, Son, Holy Ghost for being more indulgent than Album
, writing "All too often, artists follow up a breakout debut with a difficult sophomore outing, and Girls fall prey to the syndrome, overcompensating for average songs with dazzling instrumentation." Lymangrover concluded: "The good news is that this album proves they are top-level purveyors of pop. The bad is that the eccentricity that once flowed freely feels forced." In another mixed review, Dusted Review's Jennifer Kelly called the album "inconsistent," writing "The good songs — 'Honey Bunny,' 'Alex,' 'Die,' 'My Ma' and, especially, 'Vomit' — are clustered near the front. The bad ones, chief among them 'Saying I Love You,' wrap trivial sentiments in precocious pop arrangements and conjure Lite FM
mainstays like Bread
, Poco
, America
and Rupert Holmes
[...]."
ranked the album #13 on its list of the best 50 albums of 2011. The same website also ranked the track "Honey Bunny" #11 on its list of the 50 Best Songs of 2011, calling it "the most memorable track on this year’s Father, Son, Holy Ghost, featuring a hazily upbeat chorus." Q
ranked the album #41 on its list of the top 50 albums of 2011.
Girls (band)
Girls is an indie rock band from San Francisco, California. Made up of two key members, Christopher Owens who is the main writer and Chet "JR" White who plays bass and produces. The band's lead singer, Christopher Owens, is a former member of the Children of God cult...
, released September 13, 2011 on True Panther Sounds
True Panther Sounds
True Panther Sounds is a New York City-based record label run by Dean Bein, and owned by Matador Records. Artists released by the label represent many genres and include notable bands such as Girls, Lemonade, Hunx and His Punx, and Glasser.-About:...
in the United States, September 12, 2011 on Fantasytrashcan/Turnstile in Europe, September 7, 2011 in Japan on Fantasytrashcan/Turnstile and September 14 in Mexico on Arts & Crafts México
Arts & Crafts México
Arts & Crafts Mexicois an independent record label set in Mexico City. It is an outer branch of the Toronto-based company Arts & Crafts Productions It started business in 2008, when Jeffrey Remedios and Kevin Drew decided to open an office abroad, in order to promote the independent music scene in...
. The album peaked at #37 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
and has received generally positive reviews.
Background and recording
The album cover for Father, Son, Holy Ghost was first revealed in a web widgetWeb widget
In computing a web widget is a software widget for the web. It's a small application that can be installed and executed within a web page by an end user. They are derived from the idea of code reuse. Other terms used to describe web widgets include: portlet, gadget, badge, module, webjit, capsule,...
on True Panther Sounds
True Panther Sounds
True Panther Sounds is a New York City-based record label run by Dean Bein, and owned by Matador Records. Artists released by the label represent many genres and include notable bands such as Girls, Lemonade, Hunx and His Punx, and Glasser.-About:...
' website in early July, 2011. The album was later announced on July 7, 2011.
The album's first single, "Vomit," was released as a MP3 download on July 20, 2011. A music video for "Vomit," which featured lead singer Christopher Owens driving on a city street in a 1966 Ford Mustang
Ford Mustang (first generation)
The first-generation Ford Mustang is the original pony car, manufactured by Ford Motor Company from 1964 until 1973.It was initially introduced as a hardtop and convertible with the fastback version put on sale the following year...
, was later released on August 8, 2011. A second single, "Honey Bunny," premiered August 23, 2011 on All Songs Considered
All Songs Considered
All Songs Considered is a weekly online multimedia program started in January 2000 by NPR's All Things Considered director Bob Boilen. At first, the show featured information and streaming audio about the songs used as bumper music on All Things Considered. The program has turned into a source of...
. A music video for "Honey Bunny," which featured Christopher Owens' girlfriend and was inspired by the video for Ariel Pink
Ariel Pink
Ariel Pink is a Los Angeles-based recording artist who is sometimes associated with the freak folk scene.-Biography:...
's "Life in L.A.", premiered on the New York Times website on September 20, 2011. The album was streamed in its entirety on The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
on September 6, 2011.
Father, Son, Holy Ghost is the first Girls album to feature drummer Darren Weiss, keyboardist Dan Eisenberg and guitarist John Anderson; Girls first album
Album (Girls album)
Album is the debut album by the indie rock band Girls. It was released September 22, 2009 on True Panther Sounds.-Reception:Initial critical response to Album was extremely positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has...
was previously a collaboration between lead singer Christopher Owens and JR White. The album was recorded in San Francisco's Golden Gate Studios and Los Angeles' The Sound Factory
The Sound Factory
The Sound Factory is a recording studio in Hollywood, California.The Sound Factory was built in the 1960s on Selma Avenue in Hollywood. At the time, it served as the home of Moonglow Records and the Moonglow Recording Studio...
. Doug Boehm
Doug Boehm
Doug Boehm is an American record producer and sound engineer who specializes predominantly in the rock music genre and has worked in collaboration with Rob Schnapf on a number of occasions. He produced the releases of the American group French Kicks and served as the recording engineer for Dr...
produced the album.
In an interview with Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
, Owens said the album's title
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
was chosen to reflect music's spiritual quality.
Music
Father, Son, Holy Ghost was heavily influenced by music from the 1960s1960s in music
For music from a year in the 1960s, go to 60 | 61 | 62 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69This article includes an overview of the major events and trends in popular music in the 1960s....
and 1970s
1970s in music
For music from a year in the 1970s, go to 70 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 77 | 78 | 79This article includes an overview of the major events and trends in popular music in the 1970s....
. Bands that influenced the album's sound included Deep Purple
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...
, Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, Paul Simon
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...
, Beach Boys and Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
. Several writers related Father, Son, Holy Ghost to a larger trend of indie artists reaching back to past decades for inspiration.
With regards to individual tracks, critics compared the album's opening track "Honey Bunny" to surf rock. The track "Die" is a heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
song and was influenced by Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac are a British–American rock band formed in 1967 in London.The only original member present in the band is its eponymous drummer, Mick Fleetwood...
's "Oh Well
Oh Well (song)
"Oh Well" is a song recorded by Fleetwood Mac in 1969, and composed by vocalist and lead guitarist Peter Green. It first appeared as a Fleetwood Mac single in various countries in 1969, subsequently appearing on the Greatest Hits album in 1971...
." Christopher Owens called the album's final track, "Jamie Marie," a Randy Newman
Randy Newman
Randall Stuart "Randy" Newman is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is known for his mordant pop songs and for film scores....
song.
Lyrics
Both "Honey Bunny" and "My Ma" were written about Owens' relationship with his mother. Owens said about "Honey Bunny: "I recorded [Honey Bunny] knowing she would hear it, and acknowledging that she was good to me [..] She’s always thinking that I think she’s a bad mom. When I played that for her, it was a very emotional moment. Because I don’t begrudge her at all. It’s just one of those situations, you know. It wasn’t her fault." For "My Ma", the song was "like confessing to my mom" for Owens, an extension of "Honey Bunny" and "talking about needing her in my life still.""Vomit" and "Jamie Marie" were both written about Owens' ex girlfriends. The title for "Vomit" was inspired by the Book of Proverbs
Book of Proverbs
The Book of Proverbs , commonly referred to simply as Proverbs, is a book of the Hebrew Bible.The original Hebrew title of the book of Proverbs is "Míshlê Shlomoh" . When translated into Greek and Latin, the title took on different forms. In the Greek Septuagint the title became "paroimai paroimiae"...
aphorism As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly
As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly
"As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly" is an aphorism which appears in the Book of Proverbs in the Bible — Proverbs 26:11. Its meaning is that fools are stubbornly inflexible and this is illustrated with the repulsive simile of the dog that eats its vomit again, even though...
. On the song's subject matter, Owens said: "When I’m writing, 'I’m running around looking for you baby,' I literally would be running around, sometimes at night, going to certain bars I know my girlfriend was going to, seeing if she was there." "Jamie Marie" was about a girlfriend Owens left behind in Amarillo, Texas
Amarillo, Texas
Amarillo is the 14th-largest city, by population, in the state of Texas, the largest in the Texas Panhandle, and the seat of Potter County. A portion of the city extends into Randall County. The population was 190,695 at the 2010 census...
when he moved to San Francisco.
Reception
Father, Son, Holy Ghost has received mostly positive reviews. On the review aggregate site MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, the album has a score of 79 out of 100, indicating "Generally favorable reviews."
Zachary Houle of Popmatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
thought the album was superior to Album
Album (Girls album)
Album is the debut album by the indie rock band Girls. It was released September 22, 2009 on True Panther Sounds.-Reception:Initial critical response to Album was extremely positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has...
, writing "Unlike past Girls’ outings, Father, Son, Holy Ghost is bracingly immediate, a collection of songs that don’t have to grow on you—songs that are fully realized and lovable at first blush." Consequence of Sound
Consequence of Sound
Consequence of Sound, also known often as CoS, is a Chicago-based music website featuring news, album and concert reviews, and editorials. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook micro-site, which serves as an on-line database for music festival news and rumors...
's Möhammad Choudhery also thought the Father, Son, Holy Ghost was better than the band's debut album, writing "And so for a whole lot more reasons – some old, some new – Father, Son, Holy Ghost outdoes its forebears in, for the second straight time, about every way imaginable. In place of Album‘s sometimes hard-to-swallow, wallowing self-pity, Holy Ghost is streaked with a buoyant, some might call it spiritual, sense of self-consciousness, while maintaining the endearing timidity." Some reviewers praised Girls for sounding original despite being heavily influenced by music from previous decades. Paste
Paste (magazine)
Paste is a monthly music and entertainment digital magazine published in the United States by Wolfgang's Vault. Its tagline is "Signs of Life in Music, Film and Culture."-History:...
's Stephen Deusner declared "In that regard, this album not only surpasses its predecessor but raises the bar for any band, indie or otherwise, mining the past for inspiration." Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
's Mark Richardson gave the album a Best New Music designation, writing "Since the retirement of LCD Soundsystem
LCD Soundsystem
LCD Soundsystem was a prominent American dance-punk band from New York City. It was fronted by American singer-songwriter and producer James Murphy, co-founder of record label DFA Records...
, San Francisco's Girls [...] just might be the band best making use of the current situation. Their music pilfers from the past without shame but also manages to sound like no one else." Richardson continued: "This lyrical simplicity shouldn't obscure the fact that these are sharply constructed songs that take unusual turns."
Allmusic's Jason Lymangrover, on the other hand, criticized Father, Son, Holy Ghost for being more indulgent than Album
Album (Girls album)
Album is the debut album by the indie rock band Girls. It was released September 22, 2009 on True Panther Sounds.-Reception:Initial critical response to Album was extremely positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has...
, writing "All too often, artists follow up a breakout debut with a difficult sophomore outing, and Girls fall prey to the syndrome, overcompensating for average songs with dazzling instrumentation." Lymangrover concluded: "The good news is that this album proves they are top-level purveyors of pop. The bad is that the eccentricity that once flowed freely feels forced." In another mixed review, Dusted Review's Jennifer Kelly called the album "inconsistent," writing "The good songs — 'Honey Bunny,' 'Alex,' 'Die,' 'My Ma' and, especially, 'Vomit' — are clustered near the front. The bad ones, chief among them 'Saying I Love You,' wrap trivial sentiments in precocious pop arrangements and conjure Lite FM
Adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music is a broad style of popular music that ranges from lush 1950s and 1960s vocal music to predominantly ballad-heavy music with varying degrees of rock influence, as well as a radio format that plays such music....
mainstays like Bread
Bread (band)
Bread was a rock band from Los Angeles, California. They placed 13 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart between 1970 and 1977 and were a prime example of what later was labeled soft rock....
, Poco
Poco
Poco is an Southern California country rock band originally formed by Richie Furay and Jim Messina following the demise of Buffalo Springfield in 1968. The title of their first album, Pickin' Up the Pieces, is a reference to the break-up of Buffalo Springfield. Highly influential and creative,...
, America
America (band)
America is an English-American folk rock band that originally included members Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek. The three members were barely out of their teens when they became a musical sensation during 1972, scoring #1 hits and winning a Grammy for best new musical artist...
and Rupert Holmes
Rupert Holmes
Rupert Holmes is an American-British composer, singer-songwriter, musician and author of plays, novels and stories. He is best known for his number one pop hit "Escape " and the song "Him", which reached the number 6 position on the Hot 100 U.S. pop chart in 1980...
[...]."
Accolades
Father, Son, Holy Ghost has appeared on a few end-of-year lists. PastePaste (magazine)
Paste is a monthly music and entertainment digital magazine published in the United States by Wolfgang's Vault. Its tagline is "Signs of Life in Music, Film and Culture."-History:...
ranked the album #13 on its list of the best 50 albums of 2011. The same website also ranked the track "Honey Bunny" #11 on its list of the 50 Best Songs of 2011, calling it "the most memorable track on this year’s Father, Son, Holy Ghost, featuring a hazily upbeat chorus." Q
Q (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
ranked the album #41 on its list of the top 50 albums of 2011.
Track listing
Girls
- John Anderson - Guitar, Vocals (Background)
- Dan Eisenberg - Organ, Piano, Piano (Electric)
- Christopher Owens - Artwork, Composer, Guitar (Classical), Guitar (Rhythm), Harmonica, Mellotron, Vocals
- Darren Weiss - Drums, Percussion
- Chet "JR" White - Bass, Guitar, Percussion
Additional personnel
- Vearline Board - Vocals (Background)
- Doug BoehmDoug BoehmDoug Boehm is an American record producer and sound engineer who specializes predominantly in the rock music genre and has worked in collaboration with Rob Schnapf on a number of occasions. He produced the releases of the American group French Kicks and served as the recording engineer for Dr...
- Mixing, Producer - Chris Claypoole - Assistant Engineer
- Tisha Fredrick - Vocals (Background)
- Girls - Mixing, Producer
- Camren Lister - Assistant Engineer
- Drew Zajicek - Assistant Engineer
Charts
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
37 |
| US Independent Albums Independent Albums The Billboard Independent Albums is a chart of the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays in the United States, compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is used to list artists who are not signed to major labels... |
10 |
| UK Indie Chart UK Indie Chart The UK Independent Chart or Indie Chart is a chart of the best-selling independent record releases in the UK.- History :In the wake of punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered... |
20 |
| French SNEP Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
123 |
| Norwegian VG-lista VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
21 |