Album Review :: London Grammar - If You Wait

London Grammar

If You Wait

September 9 2013 (Metal & Dust Recordings)

8/10

Words: Andrew Major

London Grammar, who have been on the rise all summer, now hit their culmination in the form of their debut album, ‘If You Wait’. Even prior to its official release the album was being touted as one of the top dogs to win the ever prestigious Mercury Music Prize in 2014. For what has already been released from the album (‘Strong’, ‘Wasting My Young Years’ and ‘Metal & Dust’) it is clear to see that London Grammar certainly have the credentials to follow in the footsteps of now mega-stars The XX , Alt-J and The Arctic Monkeys.

It hasn’t taken them long to haul themselves up the proverbial ladder in the past couple of years. From the humble beginnings of performing acoustic sets to a handful of people at a small venue in Bury St. Edmunds to heading out on their first U.S tour in the coming months. I’m sure this young London-based trio have had a lot of adjusting to do, however their blend of classical and ambient sounds have always shown their true musical maturity. ‘If You Wait’ jolts into life with the opening bars of the bands very first release ‘Hey Now’. A sparse smattering of Foals inspired guitar work accompanies front-woman Hannah Reid’s guttural vocal delivery with that ever popular but highly basic 4/4, kick/snare electronic drum pattern. A provocative entry to an inevitably important debut LP.

‘Stay Awake’ sets the tone for the album with some ambient strings and a driving beat to build momentum for the layers of instrumentation to build. With the subject matter of the album very much focussed towards reminiscence of past and present lover’s, Reid confuses that her lyrical content is mainly surrounding “people who come in and out of her life”; this becomes increasingly evident as the album goes on. ‘Shyer’ shows off the trio's organic recording process with some audio taken live from the studio before some more muted guitar and vocal led production ensues, very much in the vein of ‘Stay Awake’.

With the atmosphere for ‘If You Wait’ laid out, ‘Wasting My Young Years’ is the album's stand out track and the track that most of you will have heard on national airwaves this summer. With a significantly more dance orientated feel to it and begging for some bass heavy club remixes to be produced, it is sure to be what ‘Rabbit Heart’ was to Florence and the Machine; paving the way for a wide following of fans to latch on and never let go. ‘Sights’ Is another slow builder following the formula of previous tracks, crystal clear vocals mixed with a slumping drum pattern and some ethereal piano topped off with electronic touches. London Grammar clearly didn’t leave the track listing for ‘If You Wait’ to chance, it is very well planned with a sequence of (dare I say it) “album tracks” interspersed between some more single quality tracks which keep the record moving.

‘Strong’, ‘Nightcall’ and ‘Metal & Dust’ retain the album’s subject matter and pack a lot of memorable melodies in the way of vocals; 'Strong' in particular, which harks back to Massive Attack style chorus melodies which is never going to be a bad thing. ‘Nightcall’ falls into the same category: essentially an album track serving its purpose between two far stronger tunes. Another previously released single ‘Metal & Dust’ signals the calm before the storm for ‘If You Wait’, the same vocal/guitar combination move the track along and some extremely pleasing programmed drums transform ‘Metal & Dust’ for the better.

As the album reaches the final furlong, London Grammar engineer a bold move in respect to a debut LP by including a live track. ‘Interlude (Live)’ pays dividends in promoting the bands live prowess and again Hannah Reid’s splendid and varied vocal range. Finally  we have ‘Flickers’ and the album title track. The former offers up a slightly different side with a sort of modern blues vibe, interesting vocal pattern and multi-instrumentalist Dot Major’s djembe drum work which stops the album from type-casting itself into a set genre or style. ‘If You Wait’ is a track which lays you down softly and encourages you to call every last ex- you can think of and confess your undying love to them, bringing back flashes of Faithless and their ability to conjure waves of ambience that seem to wash over you; a majestic climax from a band keen on sending out the message that they really do mean business in the coming years.