You almost ran out of steam there. :)



Ok, so we have seen simply bad reviews (those that diss chems) and simply good reviews (those that appreciate chems). ;-) Can anyone point out negative reviews that actually make some good points? Or perhaps positive reviews that don't say anything useful at all?

What I think most people don't understand about the Chem"s is that they don't here the secondary and tertiary beats and tunes. Or they just think it is to wierd or are biased to a style like hip-hop which they do sometimes. After hearing samples from the other songs that I havn't heard at all yet, I think that this is definitely a solid album. (I really wan't to hear giant though :x ) And I retract my statement earlier that I thought the beats were weak or whatever now that I've heard them again.



And now, equinox24, you skip galvenize because it's "rap." That is the most stupid statement I think I've ever read. It's freakin' hip-hop sounding with a twist of chemical... or the other way around. I really like the song. Arg, now I'm angry too.

I still haven't listened to the entire album from the start till finish, as I dont want to download it illegaly, so I'm waiting for the official release next week.

That said, I have unwantedly listened to almost entire album, because the local radio station has made it the album of the week, meaning that they are playing at least 3 songs of it every day.

My first reaction is that this album is definetly not a dissapointment. Its a solid chems album with their typical range of psychedelia, trippy, chillled out songs, funky rythms, etc.

But I have to partially agree with dan_069 on this one. It seems that 'problem' with this album is that it doesn't have a 'major' song, a massive track, a big hit, whatever you wanna call it. '



Galvanize' comes close but its just not 'big' enough. My other issue is that a lot of the songs seem to, well, go nowhere. Marvo Ging for example, its starts with the same melody, the middle has the same melody, and it ends...well with the same melody, with nothing major happening in the track. And I honestly think that Chems made a mistake by puting 'left, right' in the album. That song is just wrong- a politicaly inspired rap on Chems album!?, which chemical fan wants to hear that?



On the positive note, Boxer is a realy cool track, and I hope that will be their next single. Also, everytime i hear 'Big Jump' i get up and start jumping around my room. I guess thats a good sign.

PTB is everything I was expecting. I always enjoy good artists using nice new sounds and pushing their and my limits. Excellent.

Alchemist Escribi�:

That song is just wrong- a politicaly inspired rap on Chems album!?, which chemical fan wants to hear that?

I want to hear that. It works for me on so many different levels.



WARNING - the following has some Left Right spoilers.....





1.) the lyrics are dead on. leaders who start wars simply because they can for whatever reason/agenda without making sure their case is solid and without making sure it was the last resort should have the finger pointed at them. they should be called out. it is obivous that the mainstream media isn't going to do it, so then it is also obvious that other people in the public eye would have to bring the issues to light. the lyrics in htis song relate to one of the most important events in my lifetime. i appreciate the chemcial brothers and anwar letting the other people like me know we are not alone when we think like this.



2.) this "rap" song is taking things back to the way it used to be. when rap groups used to have a message. think about the things Public Enemy used to say. Hip hop and rap used to be about two main things. getting a message out and or just coming together and having a good time. (The chems hit both these targets with PTB. see Left Right and Galvanize.)



3.) if this had been a standard rap tune with a standard hip hop beat, it still would have been a good track. Anwar's flows are very fluid.."don't matter what sides wrong or right......some incent lives will be lost on the battle-field tonight...."



4.) back to the message of it all. one line speaks a hard truth that asks a question that we all really need to think about. "if it is so important for us to fight for mankind.....why I don't see none of their kin-folk out there on that front line." If it was so important for the US to go to war, why didn't we see Dick Cheney's daughter join the Marines? Why didn't we see the Bush twins join the Army? If we were under such a grave threat and we were at the las tresort, surely it would have been time for our leaders and their families to stand up and put their money where their mouth was. This would be the time where a leader and protector would lay his body on the line to save his people. That didn't happen. Instead, it was those from the "wrong side of town" who were loaded onto the planes and shipped of the the hot hell hole of war.



5.) this isn't a standard hip hop tune. this has Chemical Brothers written all over it. Some sounds might be throw backs to the older days, while other sounds are certainly fresh and new. At one point, a sound comes in that sounds's like it might be a sample from a weapon going off. <---can you say hello..I remember a sound just like you in a track called "electrobank". Then you also have this psychedelic sound that is playing through out. Kinda sounds like some late 60's ealry 70's acid funk guitar. Maybe the bros put this in here to as a nod or to show that our generation is going through the same thing that happened 30 plus years ago. War? ....or maybe just because it sounds so god damn good? We also have what sounds like a real bass guitar going. Not only does it sound good and fit the track, but it appeals to those who don't normally listen to electronic music. Not talking about on a commercial level, but on a "musican's level". I have so many friends who play guitar and it is so hard for them to feel EDM because they are just so used to listening to the gutiars in songs. When they hear a track without guitar, it sort of throws them for a loop. They find it a little bit harder to get into the track. Now this isn't because they are closed minded or anything like that, it is simply because they have spent the last 15 years working on their craft and they simply are just used to focusing in on those guitar riffs. I tell them that should see this as a gift while they tell me it is a curse. Okay, kinda went on with but I think you get my point. There is an element of real "hands on" musicianship(<--is that word?).





6.) here we are back to the massage again. Anwar begins to speak to us all. He calls upon all nations(not literely..but it is certainly an understood theme) to stand up. This in my opinion is to say that we are all equal(as lennon said....."we can all live as one"). this is the message that I have tried to get out as I go about my everyday life...weather it is about nationalty, religion, race or whatever. Fuck it. We all fucking bleed, we all fucking love and we all feel emotion. We all are the same. Things would be so much better if we all could just realize it. It would be nice if our leaders understood this. I m a g i n e.







7.) hmmmm......back to the music. so that bass gutiar I was speaking about. It ends up turning into a driving bass line that has a cChemical feel to it. All the while there are many sounds buzzing and moving around the sound scape. They are somewhat subtle and non-abrassive. You might not even realize they are there until you have heard the track numerous times. This would be the magic that I spoke of earlier in this thread. Sorry, but there just isn't any other "rap" out there like this. If there is, please enlighten me.



8.) so, I wa sable to have a PTB listening party in my friends basement on a badass sound system. We all got drunk and also endulged in the AK. We had a blast and everybody in the room loved this album. I mean they flat out loved it. I knew some tracks would go down quit well with them like Believe, but I was thinking that the least enjoyed tune would be "Left Right. I thoguht this because most of those guys don't listen to too much hip hop. They do listen to it, they just listen to other genres more. We all passed out after listening to the album. The next day, when /i woke up..we all began to discuss PTB. To my surprise, many of them said that Left Right was the stand out track of the night.



8.5) My wife works with one of my really good friends. She gave him her copy of PTB to borrow the other day. He came to work the next day and when they discussed the album, he said his favorite track at the moment wa "Lef Right". He is also one of those guys who likes hip-hop, but usually listens to other styles. It was the 70's funk thing that really captured his attention.





now...my thoughts on the track may be way off, but it is the way I hear it and that means the most to me. this track effects me in a certain way and that is all I can ask or hope for really.......... : )







****please also note that I am typing with my left hand only(I am right handed) and I have also taken two pain killers. This post was even more of an effort that you first realized. I do love the Chems. cheers!

well sorry souphead but i think you are in the minority

Alchemist Escribi�:

well sorry souphead but i think you are in the minority

Count me in the minority with Thesouphead. :D

and i would like to be counted in the minority too!!!!

DELETED

Alchemist Escribi�:

well sorry souphead but i think you are in the minority

okay......fine



that is fairly standard when speaking about music these days. Nobody at work really likes my kind of music. My parents and my sister don't really like my music. My sister's friends don't like my music. I am used to being in the minority when it comes to music. Leslie at 99X(WNNX Atlanta) has told me many times that I am in the minority and she has explained that this is the reason there are no dance stations in Atlanat. Par for the course.

Alchemist Escribi�:

well sorry souphead but i think you are in the minority

I will give you the benefit of the doubt. You live in a place where people are more open to damn good music.You live in an area where you have most liekly been exposed to really groundbreaking upfront music. Even fucking dark breaks and progressive breaks that I really enjoy. I can wish that Atlanta was more open minded when it came to dance music. Lots of talent coming from down under these days. From what Phil K has told me, the dance scene there really enjoys dark tunes and those heavy dirty bass lines. Hell, I believe it too with guys like Phil, Infusion, Freeland, Chable, Nubreed and the like constantly releasing tunes right up my alley......you might say the Dark Alley.

Gotta say, I heard this record.



It is solid. Solid fucking golden genius.



There is not a thing I dislike about it. It's everything I want in a record. And yet it's nothing I bothered to seek in a record, because that's asking a lot. And in reality, that's not always possible... if ever.



This record is about power, emotion, the heart, the mind. I really do think, without sounding like a stark raving fanatical lunatic, that there is real soul in this record. It is... it's so human because it has the power to impact on so many levels, if you stash your prejudices and open your minds and hearts and let this fucker in. Very seldom do I experience a record where it is the sum of all its parts, a concept that takes you on a whimsical journey through the most amazingly crafted soundscapes - where one minute you are adrift on a haunting vocal melody, the next you are marching on the front lines of a battlefield, the next you are wondering if it's proper to feel a bit naughty as the primal beat does more than make you want to tap your feet to the rhythm, the next you are floating about - it could either be the universe or underwater - but you know you're in aural ecstasy, and the abrupt end that feels like an instantaneous gush of air entering your lungs after you've held your breath for so long.



I don't know how they did it, and really I don't think that matters - but they created these landscapes of the mind and body and personified them in song.



Jaysus, what an incredible, epic journey! If this means I am in the minority, then I'll happily go along the journey with my new and few friends...

Oh, and souphead...



If there is anyone who could take the thoughts right out of my head, it's you.

I have to agree that Australia is more open place for dance music in general than US. Nice to hear that you listen to some of the australian electronica acts such as nubreed and infusion ;-)

The thing with 'left right' is that I realy dont want Chems to be involved into political disscusions. I just dont want that in my music. Leave that shit to eminem and such.

Damn whirlygirl, I whish I was like you. You seem to find beauty in everything, even if its a peice of crap 8)

Mia...let me tell you.......it keeps growing and growing. there is so much on theis record that is so intense and at the same time so subtle, you just can't process it all the first few listens. It all just doesn't register. As you begin to really listen and examine the songs, you will notice more sounds....more depth and more color. I have been blown away again tonight. It was like heraing the album for the first time again and believe me, I have heard it many times by now. Surprises just keep popping up. I am realizing how fucking organic some of these songs sound. The most psychedelic songs(Hold Tight London and Close Yor Eyes) sound as if theyare made from 90% "real" instruments....you might say as in "MTV's Unplugged". They sound imagery that is created has the fluid melody/breaky structure and sound-color of a Chemical Brothers tune, but sounds as if it was built with mostly acoustic instruments. Guitars, triangles, xylophones, wind chimes, drum set, etc....... I know the bros have done this in the past, but this time it seems like a vision they once had has been fully realized.

Most people want their favorite artists to shut the hell up when it comes to politics.



And even more people want their least favorite artists to shut the hell up when it comes to politics.



Not everyone want to mix music and politics - that's a matter of personal taste. Not everyone likes John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Sly and the Family Stone, Neil Young, Eminem, U2, Peter Gabriel, Jefferson Airplane, REM, the Beasite Boys etc. etc. etc. et al. A good portion of the above shit I grew up with. It's what I'm used to, and it goes without saying that my views are alligned with a lot of what I listen to. In general, I like protest songs, when I was younger the music was the foundation that helped me open my eyes and take interest.



I think artists should have their say. Art should reflect the times. In a way it gives us a voice, too.



And I say it takes balls to do what the Chems did. Nobody expects them to have any feelings about what's going on in the world, it's all about the beats, right - and I think it's a sad thing when people would rather have that part of them silenced.



Tom is a father. I imagine he wonders, like any parent does, "is this the kind of world I want for my child?"



I read a good quote from the Chems once - they said that everything they want to say, they say it in their music. It's what they feel, music is one of the most pure forms of expression. Left Right is not some half assed attempt at songwriting, and it's not a half baked attempt at conveying frustration, fear, anger - all very real and human emotions brought on by what's going on in the world around us. The bombs going off in the music, what sounds like planes flying overhead, the anger in Anwar's vocals, the overall frustration all neatly packed into this song speaks volumes.



I guess one can always push the "skip" button...

Alchemist - X-D I have changed a lot of diapers in my time, but still to this day I believe there really ain't nothing beautiful about poop. ;)



Not that we're talking about dirty diapers. hehe.



Anyway - souphead, I think you're spot on with the organic feel of this record. Some songs feel very outward and bombastic, others feel very womblike and warm. You got synths and weird sounds that turn like the gears in clockwork. All the elements working in this record are so perfectly balanced.



Marvo Ging for instance. What a delightful tune, I love this one! It reminds me of Otter Rock - it's simple yet has a rich, textured melody. It's as though Marvo Ging picks up where Otter Rock left off. It sounds like... it sounds like there's almost a folky, backroads southern feel to it - Like there's slide guitars and distorted harmonicas, almost a stand up bass type feel to the groove which keeps it grounded - then you have the twinkly parts that rain down in the song.



I could go on.



But... I'm just kind of blown away at the moment.

I understant what you are saying whirlygirl. A lot of big artists tend to express their opinions about politics, injustise in the world, etc, and thats fine. We need that sometimes, to push us out of our 'super happy imaginary world' we create for ourselfs, and to realise that the 'real' world needs change.

But my point is that this is not the 'Chemical way' of expressing things. Yes, you might like this song, but you must understand that majority of the chems fans like me wont. A pure rap song disscusing politics?! I agree with you that you need a lot of balls to do this in the current world climate. Yes the US politics are bad (I'm a child of war and I felt this on my skin), but Chems could have done it in so many different ways.



The reason why I feel in love with Chemical Brothers is not only because of the massive basslines and huge drums or a bloody 'duf 'duf' sounds. Its the way they make the electronic music 'feel'. Every song has a certain feel to it - from excitement (BRB, HBHG), nostalgia (Pioneer skies), happiness (star gutar), lonliness (where do i begin), etc.

With the simple sounds and samples they make you feel and enjoy music on so many levels. I once read the line "The Chemical Brothers are intelligent's man dance music" and I totally agree with this.



I also agree with the fact that sometimes a band has to change the way thay make music in order to stay fresh. I have enjoyed every Chems album massively even if they seemed to change the directions. I still think that CWU is one of their best albums. No doubt that I will enjoy PTB as much as I liked others. I'm just saying that 'Left Right' doesnt have that 'feel' to it, its just not... well Chemical Brothers.

Whirly u downloaded the album??! Hehe!

I'm still hangin on till the real thing's out.



Lots of new people on this board with the new album on it's way. Holla!