This Friday at Friday Cheers on Brown’s Island, RVA’s own Black Girls is opening for Seattle alt-folk sensations The Head and the Heart. This is not the first encounter that Black Girls, who’ve spent the past few years earning a huge bear hug from the Richmond music scene with their soulful indie sound (nicknamed “snuff rock”), have had with The Head And The Heart. In March of 2012, they opened for The Head and the Heart on a month-long leg of their full United States tour.
The man behind the Black Girls’ lead vocals, Drew Gillihan, said that the tour with The Head And The Heart was a time when they matured as a band and found their live sound. “We got tighter as a band. It made us want to get so much better at songwriting and everything. Seeing The Head and the Heart play… When you see a band like that, that goes on tour like that–really, it’s any band, whether you like their music or not–when you get to that level, these bands are so good live… watching them is mind-blowing.”
Drew said that playing to the crowds of 3,000-plus fans every night on tour with The Head and the Heart was easy to get used to. “Getting to play to so many people every night it puts the pressure on–in a good way,” he explained. Unfortunately, all good things must end and the band was soon back to playing smaller shows in their hometown of Richmond; a transition that took some getting used to.
On The Head And The Heart’s part, their Richmond show on Friday is somewhat of a homecoming as well–guitarist Jonathan Russell and drummer Tyler Williams are both originally from Richmond, and played in multiple bands in the area before their move to Seattle. The reunion between the two bands at Friday Cheers is an affair that Black Girls is looking forward to. “It means we’re still friends,” Drew laughed. The Head and the Heart has recently finished recording their latest album, which takes a lot of stress out of the equation for the upcoming show and means “everyone will be in a relaxed mindset; to just make it fun, it won’t be about business at all.”
Not to be outdone, the Black Girls are hitting the studio this July to record their third album. The band plans to record the album at Sound of Music studio here in Richmond. Bryan Walthall–who has worked with everyone from Tea Leaf Green to Waka Flocka–is going to help produce the album. Drew says that Bryan will be vital in finding the sound for the album because “the sound of the record is what makes it a hit. The song can be good, but the sound has to be there too.”
The band’s writing process has made some progressions since their debut release. In the past it was something done on an individual basis, whereas now they “sit down in the basement all as a unit” and brainstorm their new songs. This new writing routine may be what ignited their new sound. Drew says the songs they have been laid out for the album thus far all have a retro style that might hearken to Bowie or the Bee Gees. “This album has moved towards an 80s sound, a little squarer, a little more synth… with dirty synth strings and really interlocking melodies.”
After releasing their third album, Black Girls hopes to be able to quit their day jobs and take to the road once again. They hope to find their second home as an opener for “anyone weird and rockin’.” Instead of sitting around in anticipation of their next release, though, you shoud head down to Brown’s Island this Friday at 6:30pm to check out their opening performance for The Head and the Heart. Drew says they’ve learned that “treating every show like a party show is the right idea.” With this mentality it’s sure to be a good time.
