In 2017 the indie-pop trio London Grammar delivered their second studio album Truth Is a Beautiful Thing, which carried that true British indie-pop style throughout, with similar sounds to Wolf Alice and Florence + the Machine. However, they followed up Truth Is a Beautiful Thing with, well, radio silence. The trio had fallen off the grid, with no announcements of new music or tours for the last three years. However, in August London Grammar broke their silence as they took to Instagram posting a stylised photo of the trio with the caption ‘Nothing Else Matters’. Fans took to the comments, speculating the release of a new London Grammar album. A couple of weeks later London Grammar revealed their all new single ‘Baby It’s You’.
Hannah Reid’s vocals never disappoint and having a voice filled with warm celestial tones gives her a power to carry the emotions throughout any London Grammar track, and ‘Baby It’s You’ is no exception. The way Hannah delivers lyrics such as “All these painted faces singing back to me / There’s an ocean here but you are all I see / And nothing else matters/ You, Baby It’s’ You” feels so personal, it’s as if she is looking into your eyes throughout the entire song, confessing her love to you. You’re taken away from reality and placed into this intimate moment you can’t escape from and the only three things existing are you, her and this song.
Creating a track with such intimacy does come with the risk of causing discomfort between the song and the listener. Sometimes the emotions feel forced and unnecessary or create so much intensity that the song becomes too much. However, London Grammar know how to balance out the inwardness of Hannah’s vocals using instruments. The lucid pads and piano notes beautifully accompany the vocals and add an upbeat sweetness to the song. Instead of intensity, the harmonies between the vocals, pads and piano are tender and offer listeners a genuine, emotive connection to the song. The way each individual instrument complements the vocals and the gentleness of the overall track is exquisite.
‘Baby It’s You’ is a brilliant comeback track, it has nods to London Grammar’s traditional mid-2000s indie pop music style but the emotions and softer electronic sound to the song shows that the trio are progressing as a band. They’ve switched up their tone for 2020, producing an electrifying ballad that has subtle hints of EDM mixed in with classic indie-pop. London Grammar are back and hotter than ever. It’s exciting to think about what the trio will bring next to music following the success of ‘Baby It’s You’.
Words by Emmie Cosgrove
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