Grouplove - Spreading Rumours

Spreading Rumours is the sophomore offering from Grouplove, a five-piece alt. pop act from New York. They released their debut Never Trust A Happy Song in 2011. And it really is – to call upon the one sporting reference with which I’m familiar – a game of two halves.

On first listen, Spreading Rumours could soundtrack every US frat boy movie you may or may not have enjoyed back in the glorious ’90s. But wait! That’s not necessarily a bad thing. There are some ridiculously catchy tunes here: step forward ‘Borderlines And Aliens’ and opener ‘I’m With You’.

That said, the samey skater pop thing eventually gets old (‘Shark Attack’, ‘Biting The Bullet’). It’s when they take a turn for the synthy that Grouplove shine. ‘Ways To Go’ is a tasty slice of electro-pop that showcases Hannah Hooper and Christian Zucconi’s harmonies, while ‘Save The Party For Me’, tucked way down at the end of this album’s whopping 13 tracks, is a ‘lighters-in-the-air’ Arcade Fire affair that allows Hooper’s vocal to soar over dreamy synth production. Middling.