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September 21, 2009 - A formidable game of "Name That Influence" could be based on the music of the seductive rock duo Girls: The band's first single, "Hellhole Ratrace," would barely reach its opening words before screams of "Elvis Costello!" and "Wreckless Eric!" drown out the music. The Pet Sounds bass lines, shoegazer anthems and country-rock guitar riffs on the pair's new album — titled Album, out Tuesday — all sound like the work of two musicians being in ten places at one time.

"Solitude," the B-side to Girls' aforementioned debut single, finds the duo conjuring up the sound of a senior prom's final waltz, employing shimmering guitar arpeggios, gentle harmonicas and a forlorn Conor Oberst croon. Girls' strength lies in its diversity, and its members have walked in a lot of borrowed shoes to make it that way. "Solitude" is a bold and sweet example of inspiration trumping originality.

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