HERE WE CHIPS

Well, I was able to get my hands on a copy of the new Hot Chip album "Made in the Dark" a few days ago, and going into my first listen with high hopes they didn't let me down. Since then, I've been able to listen to it all the way through a few times, each time at different periods of the day and in different moods, and on each occasion different songs stood out to me.

It's that kind of album. Much like their album "The Warning", and most of their back catalogue of tunes and remixes, Made in the Dark is brilliantly diverse. There are fun happy dance tracks, melancholy ballads, straight up rock tunes, and even a few which just change completely mid way through almost as if it's two or three different songs mashed together. That's what I love about Hot Chip, they're are so unpredictable, but they carry a sound which is so distinguishable at the same time.

Below I've posted my fave tracks off the album, but these will probably change the more I listen.

Hot Chip - One Pure Thought (YSI)

Hot Chip - Ready for the Floor (YSI)

I was able to catch these guys at Splendour in the Grass last year and they were fucking amazing live. I will certainly be attending their shows next time they grace our shores which, fingers crossed, isn't far away... Meanwhile, do yourself a favour, the new album is available to buy at Amazon.



Ever drunk Baileys out of a shoe

PLASTIC OPERATOR

Yaaaay, I'm back from holidays! And my first post of 2008 is of Plastic Operator. No, this is not a made-up moniker of words which are currently "in" and "hip" (re: ghost, wolf, bang etc.). It is the name of amazing electro pop duo Mathieu Gendreau and Pieter Van Dessel.

It was a pairing of fate, when Mathieu from Montreal met Pieter from Antwerp while studying Audio Production in London. The two found they both had a love for electro pop music, and respective heads were put together to come up with a sound to celebrate this genre. In 2004 they released a 3 track EP and from there Plastic Operator's name spread to the far corners of the globe, receiving airplay in California, New Zealand and even Tijuana.

They aren't short on production experience, doing past work for huge acts such as Goldfrapp and New Order, and this definitely shows through with their own music. The slow and soothing pace of the melodic bass and synths, mixed with Pieter's melancholy vocals gives me a calming feeling similar to artists such as Postal Service, Whitest Boy Alive and Royksopp.

Last year they released their debut album DIFFERENT PLACES on Mathieu's own label Fine Day Records, which is available to buy here or on iTunes and Amazon... I can't believe I've only just discovered it, cos I think it would be a contender in my top 10 of 2007 (which is coming soon)... I've posted a couple of the best tracks below.

Plastic Operator - Folder (YSI)

Plastic Operator - Home 0207 (YSI)



Ever drunk Baileys out of a shoe

PNAU, PNAU

Nick Littlemore and partner Peter Mayes, otherwise known as PNAU, have just released their latest, self-titled album after a 3 year "busy doing other shit" wait from their last album AGAIN (Nick of course was tied up with his other two-piece TEENAGER).

The album was actually released about 3 weeks ago, but I've only just listened to the whole thing so I thought I'd do a post on it now. It's pretty much like their other two albums, in that they have a few songs which are really fun and dance-floorable, but the rest are very self-indulgent - A lot of the tracks have a bit of a 90s dance-rave feel to them, which granted is very "funny" and "ironic", but I'm not sure if it's actually that "good"... I've posted some of the goodies below. The first was produced with the help of Michael Van She, and you can really hear that come out in the track.

Pnau - Come Together

Pnau - Wild Strawberries

Pnau - Embrace



Fanks