GOAT GIRL

Below The Waste (Rough Trade)

For South London crew Goat Girl, post-punk was only ever a springboard, a point of departure, rather than a furrow to plough perpetually and joylessly. They’re Warpaint with a much shorter attention span and restless creativity, and their third LP Below The Waste pushes the pursuit of sonic diversity that characterised its predecessor, 2021’s On All Fours, even further.

Below The Waste holds a fractured mirror up to the broad spectrum of contemporary music, offering up everything from the pastoral Julia Holter-esque serenity of Reprise to the gritty anti-addiction self-lecture TCNC, via the heady stew of Jump Sludge and unapologetically big piano‘n’strings ballad Take It Away.

Of course, the risk in effectively serving up a 16-track taster menu is that the listener is left hungry for something slightly more substantial and nourishing to get their teeth into. But once your palate gets used to the variety of flavours and textures, Below The Waste stands as ample evidence of the capability of the chefs.

words BEN WOOLHEAD