God Help The Girl

At its core, God Help the Girl centers on Belle & Sebastian frontman Stuart Murdoch together with the rest of that band and a group of female singers cast in inspirational roles, most prominently the little-known Irish vocalist Catherine Ireton. Launched in 2008, the project originated as a vehicle for original songs tied to a film of the same title that Murdoch was then developing. It retains the elliptical storytelling and light, whimsical textures long associated with Belle & Sebastian yet redirects them backward in time by folding in 1960s girl-group textures, Baroque-pop flourishes in the vein of Left Banke, delicate chanson phrasing, and a measured dose of Randy Newman’s dry humor. The narrative focal point remains Eve, a restless young seeker. Although Murdoch initially envisioned a changing roster of women answering classified ads to sing the character’s parts, Ireton—a dusky, smooth jazz stylist—supplies the bulk of the vocals on the self-titled 2009 debut album, with additional appearances from guests that include Asya of Smoosh.