This is a review of "The Vague Archive" recorded by Grammatics. The review was written by Victoria Thompson in 2008.
Grammatics, hailing from Leeds are an interesting mixture of cellos with indie pop rock. Having a real soft spot for classical music myself, I was slightly apprehensive at this unusual cello/indie mash up. But where many artists fail to combine the two successfully, Grammatics triumph.
The Vague Archive is such an intensely infectious pop song it could make your teeth shatter, and the lyrics reminisce on seasons changing and fun summers. They sure seem to know their target audience.
The impression I get from the song is that it’s walking on a tightrope, one side is summery, cheerful electro pop, and the other side is melancholic indie. Grammatics manage to make their way across the tightrope without ever falling off. The balance is spot on.
The radio edit is just over two minutes of toe tapping bliss, while the extended version treats the listener to longer instrumental breaks and a heartfelt duologue of the singer’s past regrets with the melancholic strings complimenting the words perfectly. The extended version is sure to be found on their upcoming album; ‘Dance To The Radio’, and if the rest of the tracks are as catchy as The Vague Archive, I’m a guaranteed buyer.
After notching up two weeks so far in the top three of MTV2, we’re sure to see more of Grammatics in 2009. Their effortlessly dramatic style is just what the chart needs for a kick up their figurative backside.