San Francisco's
Grouplove
take the buzzy '90s alt-rock of bands like
Pixies
and
the Flaming Lips
and marry it to their own heartfelt and hooky stadium pop on their sixth album, 2023's
I Want It All Right Now
. It's an elevated and infectious vibe they've been conjuring since debuting with 2011's
Never Trust a Happy Song
. And while pop uplift is always at the core of the group's sound, they've matured. Much of this growth is due to the creative synergy between lead singer/songwriters and real-life couple
Christian Zucconi
Hannah Hooper
, who draw upon their own lives, tackling themes of fidelity and parenthood and turning their experience into cathartic pop anthems. Working with producer
John Congleton
, here they dig even further into the soft/loud aesthetic of their influences, crafting songs that sound like alternative radio hits while still imbuing them with heartfelt and relatable sentiments. Often, it feels like the band are imploring the listener to take charge of their own mental and emotional health, while at the same time acknowledging how society can make that difficult. This is particularly redolent on "Hello," a sparkling bit of sunshine pop replete with kazoo, tambourine, and piano accents in which
Zucconi
Hooper
just need a smile or friendly conversation to make the world feel a bit less lonely. There's also a thrilling, punky quality to the group's work, as on "Cheese," which sounds like a lost
anthem from
Doolittle
and whose title works as a metaphor for the inclination to want to cocoon yourself off from the world during difficult times of change. Yawping with a throaty glee,
sings, "Stay close to the cheese/Stay close to all your memories/Don't worry about me/'Cause this is where I wanna be." With
,
have made an album grounded in the emotional now that makes big pop fun out of the mess of life. ~ Matt Collar