Hey everybody. This is the first review of the album I've come across. Sorry if someone posted it already. I couldn't find it in a search.

The next 10

The Chemical Brothers, We Are the Night

**** Acid house survivors are more than a match for cool collaborators

Ben Thompson

Sunday May 20, 2007

The Observer

While Bjork's collaborators on the excellent Volta gleam with pristine of-the-moment-ness, the guest list for this equally fine sixth album by her fellow early Nineties dancefloor survivors has a lovably dusty look about it. There can be no ulterior motives for cameo appearances from Willy Mason or Fat Lip from the Pharcyde at this stage in the game, and even the slightly more modish Midlake and Klaxons are gleefully subordinated to the flow of a record which is probably the most exquisitely integrated single listening experience the Chemical Brothers have yet come up with.

Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice!!!

Thanks a mil for posting this.

Heh, if the Chems can 'subordinate' Bernard Sumner, richard ashcroft and that git from Oasis, yeah, I don't think Midlake or the Klaxons (who I'd never even heard of until this album) are gonna have a chance of overshadowing em.

and Bjork.... 'dancefloor survivor'? Can't really picture her dancing at all, except possibly in her room, in front of a mirror, to her own music.

They also have the Chems down as number 18 (I think) in the top 20 acts to see this summer. Roll on Electric Picnic!

Cool find! The Björk reference was a little weird though...

I can kinda see it because Timbaland worked on some of the album, right? :D

you mean bjorks album?

I heard that once, the chems had a track and thought, 'oh, bjork would sound good on this!' (which I don't understand... the only place bjork would sound good, IMO, is face first in a giant meat grinder) so they sent it to her to see if she'd like to collaborate, and she said something to the effect of 'Oh NOES! I DO NOT LIKE THE BASS!'

she got hers tho' at coachella during the CWU tour, when she got bumped from the headline spot for the Brothers.

Haha! Really? Thats awesome.

I think Bjork is alright... I've only heard 3 songs by her and I know I liked one of them. I considered buying Volta a few days ago, but I figured I would download it first to see if it was worth the money.

I've tried, tried, to enjoy bjork since the Sugarcubes, but I find her voice painful...

Oh shit, that reminds me, I got a flick sitting on my harddrive, by her husband... it has no real plot that I know of, just the two of them wearing bear suits on a japanese whaling ship with about 9,000 pounds of petroleum jelly, slicing off each others skin and eating it like sashimi.

I need to watch that.

:o Whoah... that sounds trippy.

What is it called? I want to look up some of it on youtube

It's called Drawing Restraint 9, directed by Matthew Barney... he's famous for making very, very bizarre, expensive films that almost no one ever sees.

It's on Demonoid, if you're familiar with that.

Ah cool, thanks! I'm going to make an effort to see this this Summer.

I am not familiar with Demonoid, however. :?

you won't be able to rent it. The only format he sells his flicks in is laserdisk, and they usually cost around $10,000 apiece. He only wants them displayed in museums and such. The DVD I got a rip off was intended for screening by museum curators.

demonoid is a bittorrent site.

Ah, I'll try that then. Good ol' bittorrents.

Matthew is a bit eccentric, isn't he?

check out his films called The Cremaster Cycle.

it's like an 18 hour film named after the muscle that makes you balls clench.

Awesome review. I don't know about The Chems' best work ever, but nothing in my mind can replace Surrender. So, really, maybe for me it's 2nd best.

18th in line to see this summer? Should be #1.

Nothing else has changed my life like seeing The Chemical Brothers live.

I agree, Pooter. Seeing the Chems live for the first time was a life altering experience that helped carry me over the threshold from who I was then to who I am now.

As for Bjork, I saw her with the Sugarcubes twice and she was a great performer. Her voice even back then was immense and so powerful. It was shocking seeing this tiny girl-like woman belting out so much stength, being so at ease with her own quirkiness on stage.

Flash forward to Coachella 2002, I saw her perform there and she was really good and had her crowd in the palm of her hand. She had a giant music box on stage and a harpist! Her fans are absolutely rabid, though. You wouldn't think Bjork fans would start a riot but I could barely breath and maintain for all the people rudely pushing their way into me to get closer to Bjork. People up front left that show in ambulances are had to be carried off to the medic tents. Horrible, horrible experience - people pushed me away from stash and our friends and we were all getting seperated - and I would never see her perform again because her fans were absolutely awful... except for the nice guy and his girlfriend in front of me who pulled me inbetween them so I wouldn't get crushed.

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      makeskids'stash wrote:
      
      she got hers tho' at coachella during the CWU tour, when she got bumped from the headline spot for the Brothers.
      

      
      
   
   

   
   

   
   

   That was amusing in a nee-ner-nee-ner-neeee-nerrrrrrrr sort of way.

   
   

   We found out beforehand that the Chems weren't going to close out the evening at Coachella. I wasn't too bummed because at least I was going to see the Chems! So anyway - we walk to the venue for a couple of miles in crippling heat, then had to endure the long hot wait to get in. Once we got inside, we were handed a set/times list and lo and behold, the Chems were going to close out the night! Rejoicing all around our little merry crew of fuckwits! stash and I went to rest on a little hill off to the side of the venue and drink some water, and our moment of joy soon turned into a moment of pure schadenfreude. Evil I know... but... I blame the heat.

   
   

   "OH NO!! No!!" we heard a gaggle of stocking clad girlies with razor teased hair exclaim next to us. "That is like, so lame! I mean come on, like... Bjork should close the night, not the Chemical Brothers! How can Coachella be so lame!" and if it weren't for the heat induced sweat smearing their eyeliner, I could have sworn they were crying for all the whimpering they were doing.

   
   

haha I'd rather see the chemical brothers than bjork....

though it's a tough call -- like picking a parent.... hmm. no the brothers win.

actually I just picked up volta today. It's quirky musically -- kinda interesting if you dig technical experimentation. I like :)

I am hella excited about WATN though. that is going to be killa. from what you guys is sayin' and so on it looks as though I might crumble before it....

Well, I'm hoping that either way you decide to listen to it first, it blows your socks off and rocks your world!