Los Angeles-based indie rock outfit Grouplove's 2011 full-length debut, Never Trust a Happy Song, builds upon the neo-folk/rock and dancey indie rock of their 2010 self-titled EP.
Still featuring the talents of lead vocalists Hannah Hooper and Christian Zucconi, Grouplove tend toward creating passionate, anthemic pop moments that are equal parts post-MGMT indie soul and post-Killers dance-rock.
Songs "Tongue Tied," "Spun," and "Love Will Save Your Soul" have a rollicking, post-punk exuberance while more hippie-dippy cuts such as "Colours" and "Naked Kids" (a carry-over from the EP) bring to mind such psychedelic touchstones as the Flaming Lips and late-'60s Beach Boys.
In that sense, Grouplove also fit nicely next to such similarly inclined contemporaries as Local Natives, New Villager, and Black Kids.
Ultimately, Grouplove's Never Trust a Happy Song is a cohesive if ramshackle crowd-pleaser, full of melodic double-lead vocals, handclaps, ringing electric guitars, and staccato synth parts that tips a hat to '80s dance-rock while still retaining the band's obvious love of experimental '60s folk-rock.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Itchin' on a Photograph | Grouplove | Play | 04:19 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 2 | Tongue Tied | Grouplove | Play | 03:39 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 3 | Lovely Cup | Grouplove | Play | 04:17 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 4 | Colours | Grouplove | Play | 04:14 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 5 | Slow | Grouplove | Play | 03:38 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 6 | Naked Kids | Grouplove | Play | 03:28 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 7 | Spun | Grouplove | Play | 03:25 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 8 | Betty's a Bombshell | Grouplove | Play | 03:34 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 9 | Chloe | Grouplove | Play | 03:18 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 10 | Love Will Save Your Soul | Grouplove | Play | 03:47 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 11 | Cruel and Beautiful World | Grouplove | Play | 04:03 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 12 | Close Your Eyes and Count to Ten | Grouplove | Play | 04:48 | 11 MB | 0 MB |
| 46 mins | 106 MB | |||||
| 0 mins | 0 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael H. Brauer | Mixing |
| 2 | Greg Calbi | Mastering |
| 3 | Sean Gadd | Group Member |
| 4 | Ryan Gilligan | Mixing Assistant |
| 5 | Grouplove | Primary Artist |
| 6 | Hannah Hooper | Artwork, Group Member |
| 7 | Ryan McMahon | Assistant Engineer |
| 8 | Ryan Rabin | Engineer, Group Member, Mixing, Producer |
| 9 | Steve Ralbausky | A&R |
| 10 | Sam Riback | A&R |
| 11 | Andrew Wessen | Group Member |
| 12 | Christian Zucconi | Group Member |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |