The Good Kind by Our Girl

Our Girl The Good Kind

69
ChoruScore
5 reviews
Nov 8, 2024
Release Date
Bella Union
Label

Our Girl's The Good Kind arrives as a confident, slow-burning sophomore statement that marries shoegaze textures with hook-forward songwriting. Critics agree the record rewards repeated listens, with consensus pointing to warm guitars, lively band chemistry and a tension between calm vocal delivery and pounding riff-work that defines its identity.

Across five professional reviews the album earned a 68.6/100 consensus score, and reviewers consistently name standout tracks: “What You Told Me”, “Something About Me Being A Woman”, “Something Exciting” and “Relief”. Critics praise the loud-quiet dynamics and Soph Nathan's guitar virtuosity, noting production choices such as strings and drum loops that elevate songs like the title track “The Good Kind” and “Relief”. Several reviews highlight the record's balance of melancholy and warmth, its careful pacing, and harmonies that emerge amid reverb-heavy arrangements.

While most critics celebrate the band chemistry and the album's nuance, opinions diverge on impact and risk: some frame The Good Kind as a quietly beguiling, slow-burn triumph; others find parts of the record less decisive, producing a mixed but generally favorable critical consensus. For readers asking whether The Good Kind is worth exploring, the quick verdict from professional reviews is that its best songs - particularly “What You Told Me”, “Something About Me Being A Woman” and “Relief” - make the collection a rewarding listen and a clear step forward in Our Girl's catalogue.

Critics' Top Tracks

The standout songs that made critics take notice

1

What You Told Me

4 mentions

"‘What You Told Me’ packs more of a punch with a thunderous opening riff"
Clash Music
2

Something About Me Being A Woman

4 mentions

"‘Something About Me Being A Woman’, as the title suggests has wry lyrics"
Clash Music
3

Something Exciting

4 mentions

"The wordless refrain of ‘Something Exciting’ could have, in different circumstances, been deployed as a roof-raising communal singalong."
New Musical Express (NME)
‘What You Told Me’ packs more of a punch with a thunderous opening riff
C
Clash Music
about "What You Told Me"
Read full review
4 mentions
89% sentiment

Track Ratings

How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.

View:
1

It'll Be Fine

2 mentions
10
03:41
2

What You Told Me

4 mentions
100
02:48
3

Who Do You Love

4 mentions
57
03:59
4

The Good Kind

5 mentions
62
03:31
5

Something About Me Being A Woman

4 mentions
100
04:23
6

Relief

4 mentions
77
04:29
7

Unlike Anything

3 mentions
36
03:41
8

Something Exciting

4 mentions
79
03:27
9

I Don't Mind

3 mentions
25
02:44
10

Sister

2 mentions
41
04:27
11

Absences

2 mentions
25
03:26

What Critics Are Saying

Deep insights from 7 critics who reviewed this album

The Spill Magazine logo

The Spill Magazine

Unknown
Nov 26, 2024
78

Critic's Take

Our Girl's The Good Kind feels like a clear step forward, led by sturdy moments such as “What You Told Me” and “Something Exciting”. The reviewer praises the album's louder-quiet dynamics and the newfound confidence in the band, noting how riffs and live energy drive the best tracks. Production touches and extra layers give songs like “What You Told Me” a satisfying wall-of-sound that makes it one of the best tracks on The Good Kind. The record is as comforting as it is energetic, which is why listeners asking for the best songs on The Good Kind will be pointed to these highlights.

Key Points

  • The best song is 'What You Told Me' for its heavy riff, wall-of-sound production, and vivid studio moment.
  • The album's core strengths are confident songwriting, loud/quiet dynamics, and queer-affirming themes.

Themes

growth and confidence queer identity and acceptance live, loud/quiet dynamics collaboration and production

Critic's Take

Our Girl’s The Good Kind rewards close listening, and its best songs - notably “Something About Me Being A Woman” and “What You Told Me” - reveal themselves slowly. The reviewer relishes the album’s warm guitars and delicate harmonies, praising how hooks and lyrical feints come into focus over time. There is a quietly adventurous textural approach here, where the earworm chorus of “Something About Me Being A Woman” and the riffy, low-key anthemic “What You Told Me” stand out. Overall, the record wears its nuances confidently and is happy to exist on its own terms.

Key Points

  • “Something About Me Being A Woman” is the album’s biggest earworm thanks to Soph Nathan’s patient cadence and a perfectly snarky chorus.
  • The album’s core strengths are its warm guitars, delicate harmonies and textural nuance that reward repeated, close listening.

Themes

nuance and texture hook-driven songwriting introspection vs swagger careful pacing

Critic's Take

Our Girl's The Good Kind is quietly beguiling, a slow-burn record whose best tracks reward repeated listens. The reviewer's ear keeps returning to “Who Do You Love” for its building pop sensibility and to “Unlike Anything” for its unsettling, ambiguous refrain. Production touches - the title track's strings and the drum loops on “Relief” - are singled out as small but decisive ingredients that lift the album above familiarity. Overall the critic frames the best songs on The Good Kind as those that balance shoegazey layering with reliable pop songwriting.

Key Points

  • The best song, notably “Who Do You Love”, balances shoegazey layers with a building pop sensibility that rewards replay.
  • The album's core strengths are its warm yet melancholy tone, careful production touches, and slow-burning hooks.

Themes

melancholy tempered by warmth shoegaze and indie rock textures pop sensibility and subtle production shifts slow-burning reward

Critic's Take

On The Good Kind Our Girl deliver a sophomore LP that leans into ensemble chemistry while letting Soph Nathan’s guitar moments sing. The review repeatedly elevates “Relief” and “It’ll Be Fine” as standouts, praising gorgeous strings, harmonies and impressive basslines that make those tracks the best songs on The Good Kind. The writer admires the album’s balance of lightness and pounding riffs, so fans hunting for the best tracks on The Good Kind should start with “Relief” and “It’ll Be Fine”.

Key Points

  • Relief is the best song due to standout basslines and guest harmonies that the reviewer calls a highlight.
  • The album’s core strengths are tight ensemble chemistry, Soph Nathan’s guitar virtuosity, and a balance of lightness with powerful riffs.

Themes

band chemistry guitar virtuosity balance of lightness and power harmonies and backing vocals

Critic's Take

In a voice that admires nuance, Our Girl on The Good Kind reveals its best tracks by balancing instrumentation and melody - notably “The Good Kind” and “Something About Me Being A Woman”. The reviewer praises how songs like “Something Exciting” and “What You Told Me” turn bold arrangements into accessible hooks. There is recurring delight in the record's contrasts, where calm vocals sit atop heavier riffs and reverbed atmospheres. Overall the reviewer frames the album as a charming, versatile set whose highlights make it worth multiple listens.

Key Points

  • The best song is “Something About Me Being A Woman” for its structure, subtlety and catchy chorus.
  • The album's core strength is its blend of instrumentation and vocal contrast, producing accessible yet unpredictable songs.

Themes

instrumentation vs vocals contrast calm and chaos subtlety and restraint live energy