Whether it’s Dua Lipa or Billie Eilish, pop in 2019 is all about sophistication and understatement, a development to which 21-year-old electro-new-wave artist Girli seems entirely oblivious. The brash pop of Odd One Out suggests the Londoner either missed the memo or, as Milly Toomey’s candid, gutsy and intermittently convincing persona would probably frame it, tore it up.
In any case, this debut packs some impressive punches – like the sparky Day Month Second and ambitious wobbler Friday Night Big Screen. Elsewhere, Girli’s rough-edged pop – if nothing else, a welcome respite from the prevailing chart sound – feels undermined by clumsy songwriting. Rhyming “lights on” and “fash-on” in the Charli XCesque Deal With It feels intentionally awkward; “party” and “party” five seconds later makes you wonder.
It’s apt that Odd One Out arrives in the wake of news that MySpace accidentally deleted every song uploaded during its glory years: messily enjoyable tracks such as Stick Out sound like something straight off a 2007 profile page. Back then, these DIY-sounding punky songs would have landed Girli a record deal. Whether they’re strong enough for her to keep one in 2019 is a different matter.
