Hot Chip - One Life Stand Review

4/5

Few bands have been as consistent in the quality of their music as Hot Chip. From their debut album ‘Coming on Strong’ in 2004 they have been giving us their quirky electronic pop which the nation can’t get enough of. Their latest album ‘One Life Stand’ is no exception containing its fair share of blippy synthesizers, drum machines and Alex Taylor’s dulcet falsetto. The epitome of geek chic, Hot Chip manages to combine an array of electronic instruments with heartfelt lyrics giving us their original sound.

Their latest effort, arguably less get up and go then their previous releases seems to be more of a relaxed and sentimental affair. Love seems to be a recurring theme throughout this album as can be seen simply from the title’s of some of the tracks: ‘Hand me down your love’, ‘We have love’ and the title track whereas ‘Brothers’ offers Joe Goddard’s insight into brotherly love. The opening song ‘Thieves in the Night’ sets up the standard for the rest of the album with atmospheric synths leading into a thrusting drum beat and soaring vocals. They still have the catchy dance tune similar to the likes of ‘Ready for the Floor’ on ‘Made in the Dark and ‘Over and Over’ in ‘The Warning’ in the form of the title track where the combination of Taylor’s euphonious singing and the floaty vocals of Joe Goddard with a stable backing and the addition of steel drums make for a track to remember. ‘Take it In’ offers another more upbeat track with evil backing synths in the verse leading to a much more ethereal chorus.

However, there are a couple of down points in the album most notably tracks such as ‘I Feel Better’ where the effects put on the vocals in the verse make it sound more akin to a popular house tune found in a commercial club and the track ‘Slush’ doesn’t seem to have enough substance leaving you wondering where the song is going apart from a cheesy exclamation of love. Finally, arguably the best track on the album is ‘Alley Cats’ whose chilled out guitars and mellow vocals can be paralleled to the likes of ‘And I was a boy from School’. Despite these minor setbacks ‘One Life Stand’ is a very good album overall and one that definitely warrants a listen.