Girlhouse is back with her same aloof delivery, but this time embracing a more soulful sound.
On Facetime After Sex, Girlhouse (real name Lauren Luiz) manages to deliver an infectiously laid-back melody whilst evoking a feeling of despondent boredom and disappointment. The opening lines may rank as my favourite this year, with Luiz deadpanning:
“He called his friend on FaceTime, after we had sex the first time. I never talked to him again, and I don’t think I … ever told him why.”
From those opening lines, Facetime After Sex slow motion trips and falls into a big hooky chorus that sounds like Luiz daydreaming for someone just a bit more fucking interesting. One of my favourite touches to the restrained production work here is the occasional moment where Lauren lets out an “Ohhh” that sounds just a bit like a disappointed sigh.
Inspired by an awkward dating phase in her early-20s, Luiz describes the thinking behind Facetime After Sex:
“I wanted FaceTime after Sex to feel as nostalgic as this story is for me. My early 20s were filled with lots of searching for love on the apps (tinder, bumble, etc) right at the beginning of that kind of online dating. Wow. What a time. The types of things people used to say on dates, mostly coming from me, still haunt my dreams. I have some friends that have actually met their current partners on the apps so I know it’s not all bad but for me it was nothing but top tier awkwardness. This song is about a few men I met along my journey to get off of the apps and why I tolerated the shit that I went through.”
Facetime After Sex comes from Girlhouse’s new the third ep. Both are released today.