Cincinnati, OH - Saturday, September 24th 2005 - What could you expect from a band that named itself after a Duran Duran song? Well if you were expecting synthesized drums, choreographed hip thrusts, organized hand clapping, no guitar, action poises and ladies that look like they have just jumped out of a Nagel print, then you would be right.

Cincinnati, OH - Wednesday, September 21st 2005 - They call it Dancetronic Glam Wave, which I suppose is as good a descriptor as any for these Dance Pop revivalists. Not to be outdone by their monochromatic yet immensely catchy sonic creations, the all-girl Florida foursome – Rio, Kazhmir, Machine and Metro – prefers a visual aesthetic right out of early MTV: candy-colored attire, geometrically-versatile coifs, garish makeup.

Tallahassee, FL - Friday, September 16th 2005 - Ah, the dizzying, dancing days of ‘80s club music! It all comes together in the “dancetronic glam wave” sound of local band Girls on Film. Lead singer Rio, bass vixen Kazhmir, beat mistress Machine and keyboard goddess Metro distill the essence of such New Wave notables as Missing Persons, Men Without Hats, Bow Wow Wow and Adam Ant on Girls on Film’s hot-off-the-presses debut CD “Danceteria”. The disc features such pulsing ditties as “Blacklight,” “Toxic Society” and “Love Robot”. It’ll make you want to bust out the shiny pink eyeshadow and ripped fishnets.

Atlanta, GA - - With eye-popping colored outfits and the kind of hairstyles that kept AquaNet in business during the 80s, Girls on Film came onto the stage last year at the now defunct Echo Lounge in Atlanta. After an energetic show, I scored a copy of their self-titled EP, which I embarrassingly have failed to write about until now. (I'm a bad minion, please Brendan, don't beat me!)



Girls on Film is an all girl 4-piece band out of Florida specializing in making fun, danceable, new wave synthpop. Heavy on the synth and programming, the music reminds one very strongly of new wave/post punk bands such as Human League, Duran Duran, and the lighter side of Siouxsie and the Banshees. Singer Rio's voice is very reminiscent at times of Aimee Mann, Siouxsie Sioux, and Cyndi Lauper. She has a breathy, sinuous voice that sharply pitches upward on the tail end of many of her verses, which perfectly meshes with the 80s style.



However, despite the 80s influence, there is modern feel to the programming and keyboards. This, I suspect, has a lot to do with Tim Curry, formerly of gothic/synthpop favorites The Cruxshadows, who wrote many of the keyboard pieces. At times, especially in Love Robot, this influence becomes very apparent with the dreamy keyboard rhythms that The Cruxshadows are known for.



The EP starts off with Love Robot and its soothing keyboard intro, which reminds me a lot of the keyboard intro to Pat Benatar's Love is a Battlefield. Mixing with the 80s inspired back-beats are more modern lyrics such as "don't crash the hard drive," and "enter the password." A fun, dreamy song.



Secretary features a programmed drum/synth sequence that I couldn't place for a long time. Then it hit me. It reminds me of the background music to an old Nintendo game (Contra, I think). It's got the same frenzied pulse to it. Overall, a very fun, danceable song.



On Toxic Society a beat consisting of a fun, funky drum and bass riff powers this catchy song about the evils of modern society. Kind of at odds with the rest of the EP, but it works.



Overall, this is a very fun little EP that I think that promotes the band and their live show well. It's definitely not bad for a first attempt. I look forward to hearing their full length album, which is due out within the next month. Check out their website for more details.

Tallahassee, FL - Thursday, March 04th 2004 - Girls on Film is a local, all girl band raised on the fundamentals of '80s new wave. Its stylized stage presence and in-your-face showmanship will transport one back to the days of the Bangles and Go-Go's. Powered by keyboard instead of guitar, the band demonstrates authentic, synthesized '80s fun that Human League and Devo would be proud to hear.