Hot Chip - The Warning

Hot Chip, "Boys From School"

Hot Chip, "The Warning"

Maaaang, I've been waiting to talk about this one for awhile, another early contender for album of the year. I've been talking a lot about DFA lately, but perhaps the most impressive of that entire scene is Hot Chip. I caught them a few months back at Making Time and was blown away, stunned at how danceable this live band was, how perfect they fit in with the electro, new wave, new-disco sounds that were being spun. Now, their second album, The Warning, has dropped and the boys have taken things to the next level.

The Warning doesn't see the South London boys taking any huge chances, it's more perfecting and choosing a direction with their music. The hip-hop elements are toned down a bit, as the boys have let their love for synths and handclaps and microsounds to dominate this time. At the same time, there is less delicacy to the sounds here than on their debut, Coming On Strong, as things seem more driven, propulsive and energetic this time around. To me, it's a damn near perfect album, a great electronic pop album that never dumbs down its sound. The band writes songs that stick in your head, anthems almost, but each song dives off into different parts. The entire album has a nice mix of the upbeat, energetic songs, the ballad-y types and the experimental ones.

Sean Fennessy has a great review of the album in Pitchfork, cementing himself as one of the most reliable, intelligent critics writing today. The Daily Growl, Neiles Life, Can you see the sunset from the southside?, Silence Is A Rhythm Too, headphone sex, Blog pop and funfunfun all have more on the album. Buy it here, as it is another Top 1o candidate for me and a must-hear.

-I tried to catch the French game yesterday vs. Switzerland, but the Time Warner TIVO jawn wacked out. It looks like I didn't miss much, with no goal scores by either team in 90 minutes. This has been a bad start for teams that I am pulling for, although the France is still in good shape since Switzerland was the other favorite in their group.

-To help me forget about a boring French game with no goals, here is a compilation of Zinedine Zidane's greatest goals for France and Real Madrid. Or this longer and more strangely sountracked one. Oh hell, this one too, with a great French song and nice replays of each goal. One of my all-time favorite players, "Zizzou" puts the beautiful in the beautiful game, his passes are brilliant, his moves as creative as anyone ever, and he scores goals that matter (cf the two versus Brazil in the '98 World Cup Final).

-There's a great jazz show in Philly tonight, focusing on the avant jazz scene of Europe. Tonight, Day and Taxi and the Veryan Weston Quartet perform at the Rose Recital Hall [Room 418] at UPenn. That's in Bennett Hall at the corner of 34th and Walnut, shout out to all my fellow UPenn English majors. City Paper has a preview, in case you don't trust my recommendation. It's another Ars Nova production, for the record.

-I will not be there, as I am going to the sold-out Sonic Youth show at the Starlight Ballroom, which I have been waiting weeks for. I cannot wait to the see the band in as intimate a venue as I probably ever will, with new material and a packed house. I'll report back tomorrow on all of that goes down, hang loose til then.