London Grammar have been straddling the worlds of conventional pop and indie-leaning pop since day one. They could remind you of Adele on one song and Zero 7 on the next. Until now, the trio's musical trend was progressing towards the “indie” side of things with each release, especially on the Americana-flavored Californian Soil, yielding some of the group’s most compelling and complex music.
The Greatest Love wholly contradicts this trend, with its easily consumable simple pop-leaning songs. However, this is not to say that the music is not solid.
“House” is a glossy pop number with soft beats and a gentle acoustic guitar hook that will make your head bop without really calling for your attention. Same goes with “Santa Fe” with its beachy vibe and muted reggae beats that give the impression that this track has been commissioned by the good folks at a generic beer company to sell their product: not a vibe that’s typically associated with a London Grammar song.
The singles don’t do much justice to the album, especially “Fakest Bitch” and “Kind Of Man.” “Fakest Bitch,” again with relaxing guitars in the background, sounds a trifle anodyne, even with a chorus like “people don’t change, they just stay the same,” which could have been more effective with some drama in the music. “Kind Of Man,” with its chilled-out beats and guitars suffers from blandness as well, with front-woman Hanna Reid’s vocals lacking any punch.
The album truly delivers on tracks where London Grammar do what they are best at doing: soaring, cinematic songs that allow Reid’s striking vocals to be boundless and majestic. For example, “The Greatest Love,” the album’s final number and arguably its best, has a slow bluesy vibe with tension building up throughout, until it explodes in the end with effusive strings and powerful vocals that sing the equally powerful words, “I need you because you are a woman / And I’ll hate you because you are a woman / And I’ll love you because you are a woman” in calm catharsis.
“LA” is a slick pop number like most of the others on the album, but has an intensity in the music—as well as in Reid’s vocals—that makes it a standout. “Ordinary Life” is another slick pop song and has the characteristics of London Grammar’s collaborations with other artists, as an all-around beautifully produced and executed track.
“You And I” captures London Grammar's essence—the group’s epic sound—wonderfully well, with its luscious vocal harmony, pretty pianos, and magnificent choir vocals. “Rescue” is another gem, because of something else that the band does well—incorporating gorgeous piano melodies.
London Grammar’s music is most potent when it is dramatic, when it has stark nuances… when it has power! The previous two records, Truth Is A Beautiful Thing and Californian Soil, were so great because they had these ingredients as pillars. While The Greatest Love is plenty enjoyable, it seems like there isn’t as much magic on this record as on the group’s previous two ones. What this album lacks is tension and mystery, as the band appears to be a bit too settled and comfortable with itself… and this is where The Greatest Love—an otherwise darn fine album—falls short.