Kate Nash: My Best Friend Is You

It’s been widely claimed that women talk two to three times as much as men, and it seems safe to assume that a good portion of the former’s words are spent dissecting the trials and tribulations of getting involved with the latter. Kate Nash, for her part, is certainly preoccupied with the opposite sex, as well as any members of her own who happen to be cockblocking her. But it isn’t merely her tender age—she’s 22—that makes it so fun to listen to Nash breaking down the boy-girl basics. The redheaded Englishwoman with the sharp tongue delivers equally sharp hooks while banging on her piano or strumming a guitar, and she’s an engaging, thoughtful storyteller, so even when it’s obvious that the whole thing is doomed, like when the guy is cheating on her right off the bat in “Early Christmas Present,” the wait to hear how it ends is still breathless. (Spoiler alert: The gift is VD.) Produced by former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler, My Best Friend Is You is Nash’s second album, and like her debut, it’s packed with a bunch of different ideas (most with great pop appeal) that never stray far enough to sound schizophrenic, with the possible exception of an ill-advised, foul-mouthed slam-poetry moment. Nash is at her best here when she’s following The Pipettes back to girl groups’ heyday, and while it doesn’t end with the bang that it starts with, My Best Friend Is You will make most people wish that their post-teen angst sounded this good.