"Mental Image" is the third release from Tallahassee, FL based Girls on Film, a modern approach to New Wave chick bands that most casual listeners might refer to as "that 80s sound," though it's more specific than that, and has a full ethos behind it, which GoF seems to have a firm grip on in their style, sound, and overall presentation. On the downside, Mental Image only has 3 completely new tracks out of 9 on the disc; 2 tracks are re-released from their previous EP "Get Close To Me", and the last 4 tracks are just remixes of 4 of the first 5 tracks on the same disc. Some people enjoy remixes, and I will on occasion, but in this instance I felt that only the Pitiless Friend remix was listenable because it stayed true to form more than the others. The other remixes seem far too experimental or generically "techno", aimed more for a club scene, whereas the original versions of the songs penned by the Girls are much more in tune to the New Wave sound. They know it best, and I think the work should be left to them. That said, the songs that are originally theirs on this disc hit the target with flying laser light and fog machine colors. All the tracks show some development and a little more depth from their seminal Danceteria CD, which I personally thought was amazing. One thing I missed for a long time was Kazhmir's backing vocals which didn't seem as prominent in Mental Image and I really think she lends a lot to the sound, her voice is a great soft and steady compliment to Rio's dark and varied delivery of sound. After many, many listens through the disc, I did realize that Kazhmir is indeed there, but downplayed, and after thinking about it some, I do remember not even discovering her backup in Danceteria until many listens later. In fact that's another positive the Girls have going for them, after several listens, there are still new things to pick up on. On this disc, I'm happy to see Rio continuing her vocal talents with all the variety and expressiveness - though still retaining that signature New Wave monotone and deadpan base - that I knew her for from Danceteria. Rio's voice seems to me a "default" sound at a medium to lower register, akin to Pat Benatar, but then she has an amazing range of "voices", high, low, staccato, occasional deadpan sarcasm spoken words... She has a certain playfulness reminiscent of Cyndi Lauper in the verses of "She Bop" or "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", which is what really makes every track leap out and make me want to move and shake with it. I was also glad to see the same general lyrical content here, mostly rather common themes like love, love lost, obsession, and the rather specific "Medicated Mind" which provoked some food for thought. I also really liked the playfulness of "Metrosexual", the general feel of the lyrics being on the verge of ridiculousness that reminded me of their earlier "Love Robot", both songs made me giggle while reading along. Props for including lyrics in the liner notes, Girls. Oddly enough I also noticed that almost every song has a reference to "God" or "Devil", which signals to me either a recent religious experience on someone's part, a firmer Christian background than was previously noticed, or simply a cheap shot at trying to make lyrics "deeper" - nothing wrong with that, every songwriter pulls it at some point - but I just found it odd that every track included a reference. Don't worry, you won't find any heavy-handed messages on this album, that's not what GoF is known for, just enjoyable, poppy, retro, electronic grooves. For people new to Girls on Film though, let me point you in the direction of Danceteria, which I felt was the slightest bit more accessible to the casual listener. On this EP, if you're not a huge New Wave devotee, I find the most approachable tracks to be "Too Close" and "Pitiless Friend", which both covered some great lyrical content, as well as provided very catchy, danceable tunes. If you're already familiar with Girls on Film, you really have no reason not to buy this though, the new tracks are worth it and the Girls need all the help and recognition they can, so that they can finally get the resources together to put out another full album, which I desperately need!