“We’re playing a Beatles-esque rooftop show in LA today. In the middle of a heatwave. Should be fun.”
It appears indie favourites Grouplove are keeping busy, and for good reason too – with sophomore album Spreading Rumours freshly released worldwide and accompanied by a list of tour dates which just keeps growing.
Dates which see the band heading back to Australian shores to play the Big Day Out. “I’ve heard it’s supposedly one of the best festivals in the world,” reveals Sean Gadd, bassist in Grouplove, “we’re really excited for it.
In order to create their follow-up to debut Never Trust A Happy Song, the band decided to take a different tactic when recording Spreading Rumours.
“We were all living in a house together in the Hollywood Hills,” reveals Gadd. For three whole months the band lived and worked non-stop, “every day it was all about the album and creating something special.”
Working in such a close proximity for an extended period of time wasn’t something that phased Gadd in the slightest, or any member of the band for that matter.
“They’re really the easiest group of people. If you had to share a house with four other people – those are the people I’d choose for sure.”
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Tasking the band’s drummer, Ryan Rabin with production of the new record was a natural choice, according to Gadd.
“We wanted control – there’s some great producers out there, but we didn’t want anyone else’s influence at that point.” Spreading Rumours – from its artwork (created by lead singer Hannah Hooper) all the way to its production- is a reflection of the band’s independent nature.
“We wanted to do it in our own way. Good or bad, we decided that’s the way we wanted to do things.”
From the way that the bassist speaks about the upcoming album, it’s obvious that the band are thrilled with how everything turned out. “We’re all very, very proud of this record. I always have a new favourite song – it keeps changing.”
It’s also evident from this topic that the group pride themselves on creating an album that is balanced and rounded – with no tracks overpowering another. “If there was one song in particular that stood out over every other track, I’d be quite disappointed,” tells Gadd.
The new record also greatly extends the possibilities of Grouplove’s already energetic live show. “We’ve got lots of places we want to go to. It’s just really great to have a much bigger catalog and so many more songs to play.”
Not ones to slow down, straight after wrapping up the touring of Never Trust A Happy Song, Grouplove were back to work on the next album. “We were very inspired to keep going. Being on such a roll, why would we want to stop?” questions Gadd.
“I feel like some bands tend to take some time off when things are really buzzing. People were digging our stuff and we were digging what we were doing. I think taking time off may have been detrimental.”
The process of getting in and creating the new record was never seen as a chore, or as monotonous to the band either. “We didn’t see making an album as ‘oh, this is work.’ It was exactly what we wanted to be doing.”
“We didn’t see making an album as ‘oh, this is work.’ It was exactly what we wanted to be doing.”When working on Spreading Rumours over that three month period in the Hollywood Hills, the band recorded so many tracks that didn’t actually make it to the album. Fans will most likely get to hear this material eventually however, according to Gadd. “We’d love to keep releasing stuff, maybe another EP. Obviously not too soon though – the album is barely out yet!
But with Grouplove being such a heavy touring band (first record Never Trust A Happy Song was showcased on tour for over two years), it may take a while. “I think we’d like to begin releasing stuff more regularly. It’s hard though, because we are going to be booked up for the next couple of years.”
The band are definitely looking forward to playing lthe new material ive for the first time.
“We’ve been playing the same songs for a few years now. It doesn’t get old, but it’s really exciting when you get to play a new song – It’s fresh and fun.”
The fact that Grouplove have the chance to play live at all is something that Gadd marvels at. “That feeling of playing music with your best friends, it’s something that we’re very lucky to be able to do.”
“Even on the walk from out dressing room to the stage, that level of excitement is the biggest high you could have.”
The New Zealanders have quite the soft spot for Australia, being the home to Dew Process – the first record label they ever signed to, as well as being the first place which took notice of the band. “
It’s a home away from home for us,” raves Gadd, “It’s very special. Australia has been so good to us.” The opportunity to play Big Day Out is also something the band are excited about, with Sean revealing that they’ve “heard nothing but good things about it,” especially from friends The Rubens, who Grouplove are currently touring The States with.
Strangely enough, after The Rubens were added as the support band for Grouplove’s American tour, Gadd realised there was more of a connection than first thought. “It’s funny, I actually noticed that their singer Sam and myself used to work at the same bar in London.
It turns out that Margin and Gadd had shared the same circles – living in the same area as well as knowing the same people, while they were both based in London.
“When we were working in that bar I had no idea we’d reconvene in the States on the road. It’s quite crazy.”
Spreading Rumours is out now through Warner Music.
