(EMI)

UK lads turn in another smart, cleverly-constructed electro pop album

Hot Chip albums generally open with a fake-out, a track that sounds nothing like the rest of the album, like Out At The Pictures, the jagged, noisy track that opened their otherwise ballad-heavy Made In The Dark. One Life Stand begins with the band’s most unexpected fake-out yet – a plaintive, mid-tempo electro pop track called Thieves In The Night that effectively sets the tone for what comes after. In many ways, One Life Stand resembles Pet Shop Boys 1990 classic Behaviour; both albums explore the tension between the dance floor and the bedroom, between exhilaration and melancholy introspection. Thieves In The Night, with its propulsive bass and vocal hook, is the most instantly accessible track, so catchy you probably won’t notice that it’s all about fear and paranoia. Hand Me Down Your Love cracks along on martial snare drums, while I Feel Better wrings a surprising amount of pathos out of cheap-sounding Casio strings. The relatively quiet ballad Brothers is a highlight – starting with a low synth throb and building to a stirring chorus, it resembles the fantastic DFA remix of (Just Like We) Breakdown from 2005. We Have Love, which rides along on a glitchy vocal sample, is just as good, while closer Take It In might be the warmest track Hot Chip have recorded so far. Unlike Made In The Dark, which sagged in places, One Life Stand is listenable from beginning to end and, in its own way, pretty addictive.

****

ALASDAIR DUNCAN

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