Kailee Morgue
Girl Next Door LP

Sitting on the borders of pop and rock, Kailee Morgue merges Gwen Stefani’s pop sleekness with Avril Lavigne’s bite. Morgue’s debut album, Girl Next Door, shows off the different ways the style plays out.

The songs swing between guitar and synth highlights to different extents, throwing the focus around and being most successful when the beat drives things along, as they do in ‘Good Day To Be My Dealer’.

There are plenty of beat-driven songs, and even the more reflective tracks maintain a bounce, like ‘Another Day In Paradise’, which smuggles a pop beat into what first appears to be a stripped-down acoustic track.

The sweet sound/deep lyrics mix works well in songs like ‘Arizona Pretty’, ‘Loser’, or ‘Cheerleader’. For me, though, the songs that push the creativity further really impress. ‘Down With The Ship’ has a great verse and a restrained but anthemic chorus. Similarly, the rhythmic ‘Alright Ok’ is a sparkling track and my favourite on the record.

The album is impressive throughout. It never drops off and right through to (and including) the final track, ‘Sellout’, it brings the good stuff. On top of the self-confessed influences mentioned at the top of the article, there are flickers of Feeder, Taylor Swift, and even Fall Out Boy.

Watch Kailee Morgue – ‘Good Day To Be My Dealer’.