ARTIST:
HOT CHIP


ALBUM:
ONE LIFE STAND


KEY TRACKS:
ALLEY CATS
HAND ME DOWN YOUR LOVE
ONE LIFE STAND


"how did we get ourselves so lost?"  


Is disco dead?  According to Hot Chip it's alive and well...and in London?  The Brits behind all the "discoteca" have produced a steady stream of albums since 2000 and haven't calmed down yet.    

One Life Stand, whose ridiculous title the bandmates openly admit is lame, is their fourth studio effort.  And although making a record is nothing new to Hot Chip, the creation of this release took them down a very different and somewhat challenging route.  This release took both a tremendous amount of time and effort for the artists, producing a record that is as cohesive as it is textured.  Having listened to Hot Chip since their debut, it's easy to admit that a few of their singles have been a bit one dimensional.  Then again, it is dance music so there really isn't a good deal of room for movement in the structures behind all of the heavy beats.


Throughout the years, Hot Chip has produced some catchy singles like Boy From School and, a personal favorite, Ready for the Floor.  And as much as I like these tracks, they don't really inspire movement from me the way America's dub step does.  Where dub step is aggressive and sometimes abrasive, Hot Chip's is distinctively lighter and playful.  Maybe it's just the kind of person I am, but if I'm going to a club I don't feel like skipping around and holding hands.  


So what is Hot Chip's genre then?  Euro techno?  Dance music you can't dance to?  Electronic/ambient?  It's difficult to say...however, although lacking for me as the listener, Hot Chip do manage to polish out some diamonds on the album.  Alley Cats is a delightful romp of a track that is a glorious standout track for the album.  Lead vocalist Alexis Taylor (he's a guy, don't worry I wondered the same thing), finally displays some dimensionality on the track.  Delightfully subtle, but still spritely (a style that you could use to describe Hot Chip altogether) this track is a refreshing standout for the album as a whole.


Hand Me Down Your Love is another fine example of dimensionality on the album.  This track is more heavily textured with looped vocals and a lovely backing string quartet towards the end.  Again, still keeping the music light, but just enough to quench the listener.   


One Life Stand is probably the most musically aggressive for the group.  And despite the heavy pulsing beat, there is still enough room to include some interesting distortions and even a steel drum!  But Taylor's vocals are quite flat, almost dull, and don't add much to the overall feeling of the track.  It kind of feels more like a drag.  


I guess for me what's lacking is some sort of emotion behind Taylor's voice  Instead of a dynamic range, there is just one steady note for vocals here.  Which would be understandable if there was an overwhelming musical score backing him...but there's not.  So what results is an album that really feels like a really long mixtape.  There's really no distinctive feature for each track and although this does enhance cohesiveness, it certainly is bland on my palate.  Here's to the next one, Hot Chip!  Till then, I'll still be listening!

LISTEN:  ALLEY CATS  |  HAND ME DOWN YOUR LOVE  |  ONE LIFE STAND

NEXT WEEK:  TEARS FOR FEARS  |  TEARS ROLL DOWN

ARTIST:
WASHED OUT


ALBUM:
WITHIN AND WITHOUT


KEY TRACKS:
BEFORE
AMOR FATI
SOFT
FAR AWAY


"chasing all your thoughts, you know that you'll be all right in time"


This is ironically the first time I've listened to an album where the band name really, I mean really, represents the music they produce.  There is a truly a sound quality from frontman Ernest Greene that really is bleached....or washed out!  

In the weeks leading up to this review, I was really looking forward to hearing this album.  Not because of it's acclaim, but because Ernest Greene seems like such a nice guy!  I saw Washed Out at a festival last year and unfortunately they were plagued by technical issues.  However, Washed Out was considerate enough to play as many sets as they could (while apologizing incessantly) and just handled the situation really well.  They ended up playing their songs acoustically, which for an electric-chillwave group is virtually impossible.  However, that's what they did and they still sounded excellent.    


Anyways, upon first listen I really enjoyed the electronics in their full effect.  Greene has an interesting way of blending his voice into the music so that it sounds more like an additional instrument instead of lead vocals.  It's quite nice throughout the album but there were times where I was left wanting to hear some stronger notes from Greene.  But such is the essence of chill wave music, you don't hear other similar artists like Neon Indian, Electric President, etc. howling out their vocals.


Also another inevitable characteristic of this genre is that sometimes all the songs kind of blur together into a bland pulp.  Unfortunately Washed out does at times embody this characteristic.  However, Greene distinguishes himself at times with subtle effects to bring the flavor back into the music.  


The case in point is my favorite track on the album:  Before.  Why this particular track?  Hell they all sound the same so why even one track in particular?  It's all for that little voice manipulation at at 0:43.  It brings life to the track in a series of beats, bass, and transient vocals.  This to me is the freshest track in the mix.


Amor Fati is the darling of the album though and is what has been most highly ranked from critics like SPIN, Stereogum, and Pitchfork.  It's a solid track, but I think that there are better ones on the album, personally.  This is evident in the track Soft.  I really like the backing instrumentals in this one.  It's one of the mildest on the album and is a good backing music for productivity.    


Lastly the track Far Away really caught my attention because for me it's the only song that actually suggests an emotion other than relaxation (if you can even call that an emotion...).  There's a melancholy here that isn't anywhere else on the album.  And although I'm not a huge fan of sadness in music, I really enjoyed hearing some diversity in this genre.  


Overall, this is not the last we'll hear of Ernest Greene and certainly not this new "chill wave" genre.  With all those Neon Indians, Toro Y Mois, Memory Tapes, and everyone in between I think chill wave may be the next (cringe!) dub step.  However if this is the case, I wholeheartedly welcome it.  I'm a fan of chill wave over dub step ANY day.  

LISTEN:  BEFORE  |  AMOR FATI  |  SOFT  |  FAR AWAY

NEXT WEEK:  FOSTER THE PEOPLE  |  TORCHES

    





   

ARTIST:
DISCOVERY


ALBUM:
LP


KEY TRACKS:
SWING TREE
OSAKA LOOP LINE
I WANNA BE YOUR BOYFRIEND


"Saltwater brine where you hung your crown, when you washed your eyes in last night's tea"

Wes Miles

Discovery is the collaboration of Vampire Weekend's producer/synth operator Rostam Batmanglij and Ra Ra Riot's lead singer Wes miles.  What's interesting is how these two individuals from similar sounding bands created an album that is completely out of left field.  Instead of pop/rock songs, Discovery's album is laden full of electronics, auto-tune, and collaborations with indie rock darlings.  


Lending their talents to Discovery's debut are Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig and Angel Deradoorian of the Dirty Projectors.  Wes Miles also lends one of Ra Ra Riot's most popular tracks, Can You Tell to the album which makes it an interesting listen.  


To be honest, this album was more of a grower for me.  At first listen it was difficult to get past the auto tune and electronics.  I'm normal a fan of electronic music but at times this album sounds almost over produced.  


The primary example of this is Can You Discover?.  This cover of Ra Ra Riot's Can you Tell? completely slaughters the original as the ENTIRE track is auto tuned and backed by lousy R&B type beats.  It's definitely a tough listen.  Orange Shirt was another particularly tough one to hear, not because of the melody (which was actually quite nice) but because the odd lyrics:

Rostam Batmanglij

"You always sexy how you chew that straw

Especially when you wear Lacoste"

and:

"still you wont call me back

and every text that I get from you is so so serious

but im sittin at home sippin this miso"

and by far the worst offender:

"sleep on the train to Tokyo

Google yourself when you get home"

However, though the low notes are particularly low, there are some pretty great songs on here as well.  Discovery's ode to public transport in Japan, Osaka Loop Line, is exceptional.  And as someone who frequently rode the actual Osaka loop line in Japan, it was quite nostalgic to hear.  Here Discovery really captures the sounds of Japan.  And when I hear this track, I'm reminded of those humming trains and neon lights.  This is also where Rostam really lets loose on all the electronics he's got up his sleeve and creates an orchestra of glitchy harmonies. 

Another favorite is I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend, featuring Dirty Projectors vocalist Angel Deradoorian.  Angel's voice sounds so great with these eccentric melodies that is sounds as if she was meant to be meshed in.  Her vocals are refreshing and add a quirky feel to the album as a whole.  

Lastly, my favorite on the album is the aptly named Swing Tree.  Ironically the beat in this track does in fact mimic the pendulum-like motion of a swing.  The lyrics are hazy in comparison to the crispness of the melodies and are an interesting, yet pleasing combination.       

Overall this album is more of a juxtaposition of the good and bad, hit and miss, yin and yang.  And at the conclusion you may be left with a bit of confusion as to what just happened...and while the weak tracks are forgettable, the decent tracks are memorable and stand strong.

LISTEN:  SWING TREE  |  OSAKA LOOP LINE  |  WANNA BE YOUR BOYFRIEND    

NEXT WEEK:  CUT/COPY  |  ZONOSCOPE

ARTIST:

FOUR TET

ALBUM:

THERE IS LOVE IN YOU

KEY TRACKS:

SHE JUST LIKES TO FIGHT

CIRCLING

SING

I usually put a lyric above that particularly stood out to me on the album...but this is  my first review of an instrumental album.  Also, Four Tet marks the first review I've done without knowing anything about the artist.  So I dove into this album with absolutely no expectations and what I found was an interesting juxtaposition of "video game" electrics and robotic like beats.  Normally I would never describe an album as 'futuristic' but this one certainly seems this way.

London born, Keiran Hebden is the cerebral DJ behind the all the pulsing electronica in this album.  Hebden's influences are heavily reliant on the ambient style pioneered by Aphex Twin in the 90's.  

But there is a certain softness in Four Tet's music that you don't quite find in Aphex Twin.  This is apparent in the album's opening track which starts nicely with looping vocals over the gradual buzz of electronics.   But the moment track two starts, that serene mood is completely gone and what remains are sounds you find in video games.  Upon hearing the second track "Circling" I'm strangely reminded of those larger than life RPG's like Final Fantasy, Zelda, and let's not forget Tron .  Seriously.  This guy could transition to making science fiction/fantasy soundtracks seamlessly.  

Another standout track for me is the 'blatting' techno in "Sing".  Again I'm reminded of the video game genre because it sounds almost like a 'midi' track (anyone remember those?).  And despite the constant bleeping, Four Tet's compositions don't ever come across as abrasive.  Ironically, they are relaxing -- in a way. 


Hands down the best track of the album is the closer:  "She Just Likes to Fight" which ironically sounds nothing like its title.  It's a slower, sensitive track that sounds eerily like Broken Social Scene.  Jangling guitars and slow, moody synths take over and smooth over the jagged edges leftover from the rowdier tracks.  It's the perfect way to end the album.  


So the verdict?  Well, definitely not my favorite album, but certainly a nice change from what I'm used to.  I think ambient music has it's place but it's a genre of music that is still somewhat foreign to me.


LISTEN:  SHE JUST LIKES TO FIGHT  |  SING  |  CIRCLING

NEXT WEEK:  DISCOVERY | LP

ARTIST:
Massive Attack


ALBUM:
Heligoland


KEY TRACKS:
Paradise Circus
Pray for Rain
Saturday Come Slow
Girl I Love You


"But we like it when we're spinning in his grip"




Over the years I've listened to a whole lot of Massive Attack.  I mean a whole lot of Massive Attack.  So when I first heard this album I was somewhat shocked.  Of course, there are classic dark and gloomy undertones present throughout the album (it wouldn't be Massive Attack without them) but there's a certain lightness that's present here that I haven't exactly noticed in previous albums.  


Unlike MA's previous efforts like Mezzanine or Blue Lines, the beats aren't so heavy, the synths aren't as intense (save for Girl I Love You), and the lyrics aren't as breathless.  And so what remains is a booming orchestral sound not quite characteristic of these artists.  Although different, it's definitely a welcome and exciting change.  

Massive Attack in Concert

The hands-down standout track for me on the album is Paradise Circus.  (Many people probably recognize this from the famous strip club scene in TrueBlood season 3.)  The use of fluttering hand claps instead of traditional beats make this a unique track from the start.  All the while, the crisp piano notes interject every now and then to culminate the freshest sounding track I've heard in a while.  


But for me the true gem of the album is the opener Pray for Rain.  Now I'm a big TV on the Radio fan so the moment I heard lead singer Tunde Adebimpe's familiar croon I was intrigued.  This track builds and builds, making it the perfect opening track to set the tone of the album, until it bursts into perhaps the loveliest 45 seconds  I have ever heard.  The harmonics of 4:22 onward on this track are such a triumph that it is reason enough to love this album.


Lastly, Saturday Come Slow is a trip back to the familiar side of Massive Attack.  A bit sad, yet the strength and presence of the vocals here are mesmerizing.  This entrancing, enveloping sound is what has made Massive Attack both famous AND distinct.  Of the many electronic bands out there, Massive Attack is one of the few that have a defining sound.  
I've always liked Massive Attack, but I love this album. 

LISTEN NOW:  Pray for Rain  |  Paradise Circus  |  Girl I Love You  |  Saturday Come Slow

NEXT WEEK:  Noah and the Whale "The First Days of Spring"