U.S. Girls
Half Free
4AD
7/10
Pulling sounds from all over the musical map, U.S. Girls’ first album for indie tastemakers 4AD is varied but surprisingly centered. No matter how far it roams, everything always comes back to Meghan Remy’s strange, mysterious, and honest musical creations. Disco-dipped single “Window Shades” grooves itself around the post-relationship longing and fantasizing that we’ve all done in our most private of moments, and drifts elegantly in the five hypnotic minutes of “New Age Thriller.”. The track’s brooding outro (“You all have nothing here / You have so much to fear”) is so creepy and catchy that when the straightforward pop attack of “Sed Knife” comes crashing through the speakers, it almost feels like a relief. Lyrically, Half Free is an album about women tirelessly working their way toward themselves. Remy’s words contain a confidence and a sense of ownership best captured during the back-and-forth dialogue of “Telephone Play No.1.” “At least I’m no one’s son,” she says. A poignant declaration.
