Hot Chip – In Our Heads
Domino
June 6, 2012

I love electronic music, but not electronic dance music, or more specifically, club music.  I understand the catchiness of it, don’t get me wrong.  But EDM…it’s a dime a dozen.  David Guetta, Skrillex, Swedish House Mafia…the list goes on.  It’s not for me.  There’s only so many ways to tell people to raise their glass of whatever it is they’re drinking and try to find some sort of meaning or passion in it.

When I think of electronic music, I think of Hot Chip, and this year’s In Our Heads is pretty much perfect from start to finish.  I can’t fault it.  Every track is unique and spectacular.  Does this stuff make you want to move?  Absolutely.  But is it from a completely different spectrum than any of those other artists I mentioned above?  No doubt.  These guys are a band – they write together and they play live togeter – no prerecorded tracks necessary.  I have trouble writing this because, to be honest, Hot Chip makes me feel dumb when it comes to speaking about music.  You can just tell that these are smart guys who are really knowledgeable about their influences.  I’m sure they could speak to you about every era of electronic music from all over the world, and I could speak to you about…none of it.  All I know is that I simply love what comes through my speakers when I listen to this record.  I’m won’t pretend to be an expert when it comes to dissecting this.  I’m without a doubt a fan and a consumer, and I’m completely cool with that.  Motion Sickness is the perfect introduction to this album with an intricate layer of synthesizers layered over one another.  Look At Where We Are is a beautiful love song that I would have given anything to have written.  Let Me Be Him starts off as a slow burner, but when the soaring echo vocals kick in at the 4:12 mark, you better find every volume knob around you are turn it up as high as it can go.  It’ll take you to a better place.

9/10

If you had to listen to half the tracks on this record (rounded up, 6 out of 11):  Motion Sickness / Don’t Deny Your Heart / Look At Where We Are / Let Me Be Him / How Do You Do? / Flutes