hot chip - coming on strong
this album has been written about all over the place as if its the best thing ever. i therefore feel obliged. this previously lo-fi acoustic guitar setup have bought some new sound making gadgets and discovered all about electro pop in all its guises. the tunes are sweetly entwined with the easy vocals strapped onto all sorts of familiar thin drum sounds and 80's synth bleeps and bloops with appearances from acoustic guitars. the main difference is within the song structures, for example after a couple of minutes of a non-descript song 'beach party' then takes a swift left turn and becomes a fine and funky crowd sing along about 'hot love on a black top' adding a another level of enjoyment, as does the doubled up harmonies of 'keep falling' . in fact, it is these subtle deviations that are dropped into the songs that increase the interest over the album. unfortunately, though, there are times that the whole lyrical action does come over as a bunch of band in-jokes that people within the inner circle of friends etc will get and so a lot of the album comes over as a crew of very clever clever word play to a set of simple low key tunes.
so, for once i find myself doubting the validity of the gushing that has been directed towards this moshi moshi release from all areas of the proper media which is a real shame as after the excellent single 'down with prince' (and yes it is the best thing on the album) i had high hopes for this. don't get me wrong, i like the album, the songs have a way of getting under your skin and they are nice in a refreshing way. just that i felt i could only enjoy it from a distance and not connect with the songs on a more emotional level.
perhaps i need to get a Peugeot to fully get the correct vibe - whoa an album in-joke, may be there is hope for me yet !