Photo Credit: Tarek Mawad
London Grammar are back with their fourth studio album The Greatest Love, out now via Ministry Of Sound. Here we find ten tracks filled with haunting vocals from Hannah Reid, backed up with some jaw dropping guitar work from Dan Rothman and of course not forgetting the multi-instrumentalist Dot Major – there is no stopping this trio who always come up with fresh new music. They met while studying at Nottingham University and formed in 2009, waiting a few years before releasing their 2013 debut album If You Wait, an LP that helped them build a fanbase and they haven’t looked back since.
Opener House was released as a single back in April with a really positive reaction from their fans. The chorus will most likely prompt a mass singalong on the band’s upcoming arena tour, as Hannah sings “This is my place, my house, my rules” – it’s a great start and one of the best on the record. Fakest Bitch is a slow burner, it’s much slower with only Reid on vocals and Major on piano – it just seems a bit flat. We get back to business with next track You And I, another standout on the album. The atmospheric track combines Reid’s excellent vocals alongside the hard work from Rothman and Major. This is definitely more of what we want to hear, with The Rhythm Studio children’s choir providing backing vocals – we think it’s a great success.
“I’m in LA, there are tears streaming down my face now you’re gone,” Reid sings on LA. Musically it’s very easy to tap your foot along to and should be one of the easier tracks to fit into their live setlist. Towards the end of the song there is an orchestra – it will be interesting to see if they bring a string section on tour with them, it would definitely be the perfect setting to do so. Next up is Ordinary Life, another song that takes advantage of the string section. These songs bring a new dimension. Santa Fe is one of those tracks that stick in your head and should be good for some crowd interaction, we really like the vibe of this song. Kind Of Man is another of single from the record, as Rothman plays some nice melodic guitar on this track and Reid sings “You’re the kind of man to fall in love with me.” there is a very catchy “Na na na” part of the song that will stick around in your head afterwards – it did in ours anyway! Rescue is almost like a continuation of the previous song at times with its vocal chants, while Into Gold has a haunting synth intro from Major, before Reid launches into some memorable vocals. This is the kind of song that London Grammar are famous for, and the vocal range here is the best on the album. We did find the continual ‘into gold’ distortion in the background a little distracting, but nonetheless it’s a great track and will burn the floor up when played live. The LP’s title track ends things on a high, with the string section helping create one more moment of magic and leaving us wanting to see London Grammar on tour right now.
Summing up The Greatest Love, there seems to be a shift towards focusing on the vocals more so than their previous three albums, and at times more input from Rothman and Major would have been a welcome addition. Currently on tour across Europe, including recent sold-out shows in France and Brussels, London Grammar return to the UK later this month for arena shows in Glasgow, Manchester and London – we’re such they’ll be a big success off the back of this new release.
8/10
Standout Tracks: House, You And I, Into Gold
For Fans Of: CHVRCHES, Christine and the Queens, Foals
Written by: Alan Brown
