Speaking with Perfect London Grammar
Will the next podcast ever get done? I ask myself that every morning. Right now there seems to be too many distractions. There is just so much great music coming out right now. What’s the DJ Mr. P to do?
As I sat down this morning to start recording my podcast, I took a peek at my Friday Release Radar playlist on Spotify. Big mistake. Right at the top was a new song by London Grammar. I’ve spoken and written about them before as one of the modern inheritors of Dream Pop and Trip Hop. They makes some truly great morning and late night music. It’s the stuff you listen to when chilling out in a dark room, hopefully with someone special.
I clicked through to the “album” to find a four song EP. Huzzah! And what songs they are. The lead off song, “How Does It Feel” has that wonderful Dream Pop and Trip Hop fusion common to bands like Mazzy Star. Even more so though, it reminded me immediately of “Do You Feel It?” by Chaos Chaos. both musically and thematically. It’s not just chill and trippy; It’s melancholy. It evokes how you feel after a break up when the anger passes and all you know is the loss and emotional drain.
The second song, “Lose Your Head” continues on with the dream pop feel, more so than Trip Hop. Here, the beats are slower and lyrics sadder tinged with anger. Like I said, London Grammar does great breakup music.
The third song on the EP, “California Soil”, is very Trip Hop. Slow, trippy beats drive a song that’s practically an outtake from Massive Attack’s Mezzanine. It’s perfect for the chill out room or late night drive. Of course, a lot of London Grammar is great for late night drives. It’s a recurring theme.
The EP ends with a different, more hopeful, feel. “Baby It’s You” has a faster beat, less typical of Trip Hop, which just drives the song. If you are looking for a connection, then LCD Soundsystem is maybe what you’re looking for. The song is clearly a love song. It’s beat is coupled with the sultry vocals of lead singer Hannah Reid creating the perfect soundtrack for driving home with your love, tossing open the door, and never getting much further than the living room.
London Grammar is one of those bands that should be more well known. Soft, smokey vocals, trippy beats, and dreamy synths make a marvelous combination of chill but emotional. This EP show their evolution to more complex song structures with a range of moods.
You can find the new EP on Spotify.
