Parenthetical Girls (formerly The Swastika Girls) is an experimental pop band formed in Everett, Washington, and based currently in Portland, Oregon.
Begun primarily as a recording project, the current touring version of the band consists of vocalist Zac Pennington, Rachael Jensen, Eddy Crichton and Matt Carlson, all sharing a variety of instrumental duties. Former touring members Jherek Bischoff and Sam Mickens (also of the band The Dead Science) continue to contribute to the group's recorded output.
Their music is notable for its combination of saccharine pop and experimental elements, and has been compared with such disparate acts as Brian Eno, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Dirty Projectors, Philip Glass, Xiu Xiu, and Phil Spector (Bowers, 2006; Unterberger, 2006).
Originally taking their name from the Brian Eno composition "Swastika Girls", original members Zac Pennington and Jeremy Cooper self-released their limited run debut EP Christmas With Swastika Girls in 2002. Following Cooper's departure and a name change, Pennington released (((GRRRLS))), the band's vinyl-only debut album on his own Slender Means Society label in 2004. Recorded with the help of Jherek Bischoff and Jamie Stewart (of Xiu Xiu fame), (((GRRRLS))) features a total of seven songs repeated on both sides of the vinyl record, each side featuring the respective mixes of Stewart and Bischoff. This was followed by the digital-only self-release of their second Christmas-themed EP Christmas With Parenthetical Girls that same year, as well as their second album Safe As Houses (released by Slender Means Society in the United States and Acuarela Discos throughout Europe), the expanded CD reissue of the (((GRRRLS))) album, and a third self-released Christmas EP A Parenthetical Girls Family Christmas in 2006. A split 7-inch with the band The Dead Science was released by Obsolete Vernacular in 2007.
