Heya, I thought I'd start a thread where we can compile various We Are The Night Reviews (good and bad) into one easy thread. Here's some to get it started. Post your review finding here! Apologies if some of these have already been posted.

Some I've come across:

http://www.comfortco...reviews&id=1740

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   Kimberly Steinmetz on Comfort Comes wrote:
   
   Before I go any further, even if you have no desire to hear this album you must go out of your way to listen to “The Salmon Dance” featuring Fat Lip. This song simultaneously blew my mind and left me speechless with the desire to call every single person I know and force them to listen to facts about salmon swimming habits. You need this song in your life.

   
   

   However, you should feel an intense craving to hear this record. It serves as a prime example of how The Chemical Brothers are able to use a staggering amount of layers that, instead of coming off as simply “too much going on,” effortlessly create a lush and unifying musical experience. “No Path to Follow” is a technologically advanced freak-out enhanced by what sounds like a carnivorous robot sniffing you out. “We Are the Night” boasts a clever mockup of night sounds, with the background strings imitating the chirping of crickets. High piano notes sound like stars twinkling, and an imaginary spaceship begins takeoff at approximately 5:24. “Saturate” reminded me greatly of The Postal Service, though TPS should probably remind me of The Chemical Brothers to begin with. The song seems to serve as a comment on the nature of this technological age, with distorted phone number dialing and a very human sounding drum beat. I would classify this song as “dancebot.” Das Spiegel is jubilant, while “Harpoons” sounds like the intro to a Discovery Channel ocean special.

   
   

   Some of the highest points in the album took place during collaborations with other artists. “Battle Scars” featuring Willy Mason was my second favorite of the album, reflecting what it might sound like if John Cash moonlighted with The Doors, remixed by The Chemical Brothers. “Do It Again” featuring Ali Love was an almost menacingly and very weird track, and bored me after the first three minutes. “All Rights Reversed” featuring The Klaxons more than made up for it, and “The Pills Won’t Help You Know” featuring Midlake provided a beautifully sentimental end to an album filled with humor, confusion, demons, and a celebration of simply being alive.
   
   
   

   
   

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http://www.dailycal....le.php?id=25286

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   Angela Xu of The Daily Californian wrote wrote:
   
   Coming off the success of 2005’s Grammy award-winning Push the Button, the Chemical Brothers should have achieved a more polished sound on their latest effort. But the English electronica duo falters a few times on We Are the Night, despite their throbbing rhythms and relentless hooks. The album's ambivalent direction is neatly summed up by its first single “Do It Again”: While guest vocalist Ali Love growls the track's title, the Chemical Brothers wail “Oh my God, what I have I done?” in falsetto.

   
   

   Additional collaborators include the Radiohead-influenced Midlake and folk musician Willy Mason, though the tracks which merit repeat listens are mostly the instrumentals. The atmospheric “Saturate” takes five notes and transforms those bare bones into a full-fledged melody by adding shifting, complex beats. “Das Spiegel” features layered composition rarely found elsewhere on the album, as guitar chords and baby gurgles are added to the standard synthesized fare, giving the song an unusually organic texture.

   
   

   Unfortunately, the album gets off to a weak start with over seven minutes of mindlessly repetitive beats and inane lyrics, which repeat the phrase “We are the night” fifty times. And while the subject matter of “The Salmon Dance” might seem like an attractive novelty at first, a song based on the reproductive cycle of freshwater fish is inherently ridiculous. To be fair, several of these tracks are very danceable—but the ability to concoct beats which arouse the human body's primal instincts to get low does not make for artistic achievement. Some people may succumb to the temptation to do it again, but niggling voices in the backs of their heads will be asking “Oh my God, what have I done?”

   
   

   
   

   
   

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http://www.staticmul...1289?info=music

1. 
   

   Static Multi Media wrote:
   
   Following their fourth consecutive UK number 1 album, the double GRAMMY Award winning Push The Button, The Chemical Brothers return with their sixth long player, set for release on June 19th 2007. We Are The Night is The Chemical Brothers finest record yet, twelve tracks of psychedelic warehouse party acid music, euphorically melodic and as uncompromising as their retina scorching live shows.

   
   

   Recorded undercover of darkness in a bomb proof bunker in South London, We Are The Night is a route map through modern psychedelia; a derailed rollercoaster that barrels the listener onto a journey that moves seamlessly from frenetic percussion workout that threatens to splash out of the speakers, to metronomic pulses that sound like the kind of music that gets played out at some kind of future disco populated entirely by robots; from the wheezing groans of modular synthesizers that sound like they've been left out in the rain to die, to hallucinogenic public service announcements about salt water fish. All the while, disembodied robo-voices boom out mind control commandments as guest vocals weave in and out of tracks like previously undiscovered instruments...

   
   

   Effortlessly evoking the dancefloors of Manchester and Minneapolis in the early '80s and London of 2007, We Are The Night is The Chemical Brothers at their very best. Infectious from the ominous opening through to the gorgeous dying embers, the record features some of their most mind-blowing music to date, a massive step up for the duo in terms of both production and sound. The album builds on the band's immense back catalogue and reaffirms them as true pioneers of electronic music, a band who are consistently hugely successful both critically and commercially.

   
   

   We Are The Night follows on from 2005's Push The Button, which featured the huge single "Galvanize". As is often the way with Chemical Brothers records, it achieved a life of its own, soundtracking everything from South American raves to the London's Notting Hill Carnival and all points in between. The duo recently sneaked out an album preview (the anonymously released ultra limited "Electronic Battle Weapon" 8 & 9). Much of the record has been tested out on dancefloors across the world during the past twelve months.

   
   

   We Are The Night - the soundtrack to the summer just arrived...
   
   
   

   
   

Angela Xu is a cunt.

what the hell is up that Angela Xu's ass?

What the fuck is this:

"While guest vocalist Ali Love growls the track's title, the Chemical Brothers wail “Oh my God, what I have I done?” in falsetto."

uhm... moron much?

good idea of a thread whirly - let's keep em all in once place - i been missing too much on this thread recently - can catch up on all the reading over the weekend.

hey! finally some good reviews (except Angela XU's), good idea to keep all the reviews in one place!

http://www.goodgoodp...e.blogspot.com/

1. 
   

   the people at good good people wrote:
   
   The Chemical Brothers return after a two-year break with a new album ‘We Are The Night’.

   
   

   ‘We Are The Night’ is Ed Simons and Tom Rowlands sixth album since the duo’s inception as the Chemical Brothers in 1995. Having been one of the founders of Big Beat genre and still regarded as pioneers by many, the Chems return in 2007 to a dance scene dominated by electro-clash and breaks - perfect timing for their mix of beats, breakbeats and old skool house.

   
   

   As with every Chemical Brothers album on the first few listens, ‘We Are The Night’ positively jumps from the speakers. The title track in particular with its jumping bass, piano hook and thunderous intro is magnificent and leads into another album highlight ‘All Rights Reversed’ - The Chems much-anticipated collaboration with The Klaxons. The other collaborators on this album are just as diverse as their previous guests. Ali Love makes an appearance on previous single ‘Do It Again’, Willy Mason on the Beta Band-esque ’Battle Scars’, Midlake on the epic-closing number ’The Pills Won’t Help Now’ and Fat Lip on the quirky and completely mad ‘The Salmon Dance’.

   
   

   This is a very solid album, there’s a depth to ’We Are The Night’ which will keep the listener returning after the initial excitement has worn off. Easily the Chemical Brothers’ best album since ‘Surrender’ - much more consistent than ‘Push The Button’ and a lot more interesting to listen to… ‘We Are The Night’ is released via EMI on the 2nd July.

   
   

   The Chemical Brothers are headlining Bestival and the Other stage at this year’s Glastonbury festival. The duo will also be playing a free gig in London’s Trafalger Square on the 9th September
   

   
   

I"m reading some french reviews of "We are the night"... most of them tell something like :

"well, the brothers are still here, not crap, not genius, just here and producing somme good records but they are out of the game. it looks like an old friend that you see and who tell you and old fashion joke like ten years ago."

all people talk about trentemoller, tiefschwarz james holden or Justice (what the hell with this hype ? it's fucking desperate to see how the album is only listenable- it's really really far to be a great record-). Nobody, and i repeat, nobody in electronica had produced such demential track like "private psychedelic reel", " chemical beats", "sunshine underground", " it began in afrika" "believe" or " we are the night". Amazing sounds and production. Where is the justice ?

yea, i think with this album, there are a lot of people that have very neutral reviews. I guess they were hoping for this album to be their best so far and break into American mainstream or something like that. The album is definatly good, just not like DYOH.

Just found this- pretty lengthy but sums up my feelings exactly!

"The Chemical Brothers. Undoubtedly one of the most pivotal dance duos in the mid-nineties, creating a genre and a decade in the process, awash with triple-A singles and beats. As far as the dance music of Britain goes they are unrivaled pioneers in their genre, and perhaps untouchable in that area too, at least when it comes to the singles and the subsequent impact they've made. But with their last handful of albums, faith has begun to waver and doubt has become a common problem amongst fans. Thankfully however, 2007 and the release of their newie "We Are the Night", marks their return to success, as well as the glory days of the nineties.

With the lead single "Do It Again" raising eyebrows (and frustration) as well as gaining significant airplay the last few months, the duo couldn't have picked a more challenging single to represent the album and indeed their comeback, but over repeated listens the song is certainly not without it's charm and suspicious appeal. Love it or hate it, it's still no real indication of what to expect on the rest of the album, but burrowed within the tracklisting it still feels ever so in place, a complete opposite of some of the other tracks included on the album, most notably Das Spiegel and the "is this for real?" "The Salmon Dance", the two of them combining comic sound effects into something largely out of place and unlistenable, stealing the record of it's otherwise excellent pacing. But before the mid-album problems, early on in the record as well as after there's some real gems, very representative of what the 'Brothers are about.

Title track "We Are The Night" is an epic neo-psychedelic dance into the unknown, largely instrumental and devoid of any real vocal structure, which works to its favour completely. It's familar territory, and very reminiscent of the instrumental stylings of their "The Test" collaboration with Richard Ashcroft, but sprinkled with space-rock, a recurring theme throughout the rest of the album. The slow-paced but equally epic "Burst Generator" is further reinforcement of this idea with grinding guitar and astral electronics, all on top of a killer beat throughout. Again, the track is, for the majority pure instrumental, and clocking in at six minutes fifty-two seconds, it is absolute anthemic bliss.

Along with the incredibly simple "Saturate" this idea of neo-psychedelic groove, the notion of specialist space rock is very much at large and completely shapes the album in it's overall sound. To some extent yes there is a rock-sounding focus to this album with it's focussed cymbal percussion and afore-mentioned guitar, and it makes for an interesting listen, that while accessible, is completely different from what you'd expect. "Harpoons" stretches this idea even further by adding distorte4d guitar to the mix in a formula of ambient chill-out bliss, similar to moments of Zero7. That's not to say that there's not unfamiliarity as "A Modern Midnight Conversation" is instantly recognisable as a Chem Bros track.

A returning familiarity also is the inclusion of guest vocals on many of the tracks, the ultimate (and best) example of this being the third track on the album, "All Rights Reversed" featuring recent mainstream darlings, The Klaxons. But it's more than just a quick-collaboration and is easily one of the other major highlights of this album, combining the driving neo-apocalyptic vocals of the Klaxons with the beats and grooves (and sound effects) of the chemicals, in surely what's one of the best musical collaboration this decade, and hopefully the next single to be released from the album.

As mentioned, while We Are The Night is an absolute return to form in some places, rather unfortunately, it sucks in others with it's light-hearted take on dance music and rhyme. Certainly a lot of the tracks present are major attractions, all with varying effects naturally, but that irksome "The Salmon Song" half way in ruins the album of what it could've been, and turns the whole experience into a wasted one. Regardless, FWD TRACK exists for that very reason, and We Are the Night is not only a reason to get excited about the Chemical Brothers, but also, the dance music genre in general."

(un)social-commentary

Das Speigal, comic sound effects?

Critics=retards.

i guess that they were refering to the bagpipe sounds

To me, listening to someone review the Brothers is like listening to someone describe a dream they had. It might be completely relevent and engrossing to them, but to me it's just boring.

well i'm yet to do my review. I'm waiting until i have it on vinyl so it sounds better. But when I do write it, i'll try to keep it basic. I'm sure you'll find my review to be very understandable. :)

no no man, I didn't mean us.

The only people who seem to 'get' the Brothers are all on here anyway.

ya, thats what i was thinking too

prochem, I eagerly await your review!

as did i for yours, but i'm still waiting for my vinyl to come in the mail.

I don't think this has been posted before... but here goes anyway:

http://www.musicomh....hers-4_0607.htm

1. 
   

   John Murphy of MusicOMH (3 out of 5 stars) wrote:
   
   There seemed to be a certain consensus forming upon the release of the Chemical Brothers' last album that Ed Simons and Tom Rowlands were past it, destined to recycle the same album over and over again.
   
   After all, you know what you're getting with a Chemicals album. A few star names, big beat party anthems etc. Yet Push The Button was a genuine return to form for the duo (was there a more epic song in 2005 than Push The Button or more spine tinglingly beautiful than Close Your Eyes?). Can We Are The Night continue the renaissance?

   
   

   The guest list for this album contains names that you may expect (Fat Lip from The Pharcyde, Klaxons) and some that may just raise an eyebrow with surprise (Boston folkie Willy Mason, and Texan folky rockers Midlake).

   
   

   They're all mixed in with the usual Chemical instrumentals of euphoric, slightly spacey anthems. In truth, many of these probably sound a bit better on the dancefloor than in your bedroom, although there is a pleasingly epic quality to Burst Generator, while the title track rather self-referentially sees the Chemicals sampling themselves, borrowing back the Surrender track The Sunshine Underground.

   
   

   As ever, it's when Tom & Ed link up with their array of guest vocalists that they really come into their own. The Willy Mason collaboration, Battle Scars, is outstanding with a bassline straight from Gorillaz' back catalogue and the young troubadour sounding as unexpectedly suited to the beeps and beats as Noel Gallagher did on Setting Sun all those years ago.

   
   

   The minimal funk of Do It Again is another excellent highpoint, boasting a strong hook and vocals from hotly-tipped London electro-popster Ali Love. And the spiritual heirs to the Chemicals sound, Klaxons, sound perfectly at home on All Rights Reserved. In fact, rather unsurprisingly, it sounds like a Klaxons song produced by the Chemical Brothers - yet it soon becomes a bit dreary and could have been so much better.

   
   

   Cowbells and blissed-out vocals dominate A Modern Midnight Conversation, but too many of the instrumentals feel like the Chemicals treading water. Saturate and Das Spiegal are pretty run of the mill electro anthems, the likes of which we've heard many times before. They probably sound a lot better at full volume in a field or club somewhere.

   
   

   The one real mis-step comes with the utterly bizarre The Salmon Dance, which features Fat Lip from The Pharcyde. A novelty rap about a, well, salmon dancing, it sounds utterly out of place here and unless you're under 10 years of age, you'll very quickly become sick of it.

   
   

   The one thing that the Chemicals are still terrific at though is the epic 'come-down' track, which this time is The Pills Won't Help You Now featuring the Texan folk-rockers Midlake. A gorgeous, languid 6 minutes long, the band sound just as good amongst Tom and Ed's electro noodlings as they do on their own records. Tim Smith's vocals in particular could soothe the most furrowed of brows.

   
   

   So while you may know what you're getting with a Chemical Brothers album, they remain damn good at what they do. Yet with the explosion of popularity in electro over the last couple of years, and a whole host of young pretenders threatening to take the Chemicals' crown, you get the impression that their next album may have to be a bit more adventurous if they're to survive.

   
   

   
   

   
   

My mind's made up about the album regardless, but I can't stop searching for the reviews. 4 outta 4:

http://www.uncut.net...rs/reviews/9935

1. 
   

   Sam Richards of UnCut wrote:
   
   Supposedly there’s nothing more uncool than an aging raver, but Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons wear the epithet with pride. Long freed from the constraints of dance scene fashion, they now gambol in the same playful, psychedelic realm as The Flaming Lips or Super Furry Animals.

   
   

   Klaxons and Willy Mason are worthy fellow cosmonauts (less so Hoxton twit Ali Love), while the Brothers prove they can still poleaxe a dancefloor with a well-aimed barrage of strobe-ing electro-house. The now-traditional woozy album closer is invoked with the aid of Midlake, who swoon through a beatific number titled, appropriately, “The Pills Won’t Help You Now”.