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Sep 13, 2013 Issue #47 - September/October 2013 - MGMT By Austin Trunick

Frustration over feeling stalled in their development almost led this Brooklyn band to call it quits after two albums, but an invitation from Michael Azerrad to perform as Hüsker Dü at his 2011 Our Band Could Be Your Life anniversary show compelled them to continue on for this third record. Grooms channeled some of that Dü-instilled energy into Infinity Caller, and joyfully chaotic bursts of indie pop such as “I Think We’re Alone Now” and “Lion Name” show that the band shares some of Bob Mould’s gift for catchy melodies. The biggest thing Grooms shares with that St. Paul hardcore trio, however, are their blissfully distorted tones—guitarist Travis Johnson builds fuzz pedals by day for Death By Audio—which recall the Hüskers’ New Day Rising-era sound. It may never get as intense as the classic Grant-Norton-Mould attack, but when “Something I Learned Today” crescendos near the album’s end, they come close. (www.grooms.bandcamp.com)

Author rating: 6/10