Yeah Gary Kemp shared out the news and a lot of the replies have been great in terms of sharing stories -- including one from Chris Difford!
Just heard that ‘Jesus’ William Jellett died today. He was at every gig I ever went to in the 70s, doing his groovy dancing and blessing us all with his happy presence. We’d call his name from the bleachers. He was validation that the artist was worth seeing. #Jesus 🙏 pic.twitter.com/bxvyM83NlW— Gary Kemp (@garyjkemp) January 10, 2021
― Ned Raggett, Monday, 11 January 2021 23:04 (three years ago) link
Used to see him shaking his maracas everywhere back in the 80s/90s, last gig I saw him at was a Hawkwind tribute band in about 2003 (I was depping the audio generators in the support band is my excuse for being there). He wasn't looking great even then, but sad to see him gone all the same. No idea about his views on stadium techno, I think he preferred Blue Öyster Cult.
― fish quits shock (Matt #2), Monday, 11 January 2021 23:07 (three years ago) link
New track out today, just in time for the summer, hopefully a harbinger of better times. I can’t find any information about the vocalist, sounds a bit like Sarah Nixey.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-mGA4V2LK0
― Dan Worsley, Friday, 23 April 2021 16:02 (two years ago) link
I was 13 and hooked when Surrender came out. I used to watch a bunch of MTV during certain times trying to catch the "Let Forever Be" video. (well, that and "Body Movin" by Beastie Boys) I saw it twice and thought it was really freaky. Never occurred to me that I could just YouTube it now, lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5FyfQDO5g0
it's a lucid dream, right? still one of the most hypnotic videos I have ever seen. who's the actress??
― frogbs, Thursday, 3 February 2022 03:29 (two years ago) link
the girl is played by actress and dancer Stephanie Landwehr
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_Forever_Be
great tune
― bad milk blood robot (sleeve), Thursday, 3 February 2022 03:40 (two years ago) link
when I saw it at first I was convinced it was someone famous who I figured I would've forgot about now. she's such a great casting for it, all the smooth but imperfect movements
my first real dose of online culture came from following like, the "techno" email groups around its release. when "Hey Boy Hey Girl" came out the fans fucking hated it. but I thought it was funny! like the Chems doing "Cotton Eyed Joe"! I admit it might not have been the best choice for the first single though
― frogbs, Thursday, 3 February 2022 03:49 (two years ago) link
Gondry, man. Genius.
― StanM, Thursday, 3 February 2022 07:39 (two years ago) link
I thought "Hey Boy, Hey Girl" was a great opening salvo for Surrender. If you listen to all the tracks that were originally released as "Electronic Battle Weapons" (e.g. "It Doesn't Matter", "Under the Influence") - at least through to about 2002 - it presents this alternate history of the group as this slamming bleepy house act, which seemed much more in-tune with the turn of the millennium than rock-aligned big beat. "Hey Boy Hey Girl" (though not an EBW track) leaned into that vibe in the most populist manner possible. If anything, I found "Let Forever Be" to be a disappointing retrenchment (as a song - the video clip is great) - "Setting Sun" redux but lesser in every way possible.
― Tim F, Thursday, 3 February 2022 23:30 (two years ago) link
ooh that's harsh, I like it more than that but I do respect yr take
it's the on with "Go" and "Horse Power" that I really love as far as post-90s work
"It Doesn't Matter" = maybe my fave track of theirs ever
has there ever been an artist poll?
― bad milk blood robot (sleeve), Thursday, 3 February 2022 23:37 (two years ago) link
on one
another related memory is that when the college station that I have DJd on since 1998 first got their license in '93 or '94, we would listen to the station back then at the bakery I worked at (I did radio then, but on a different station) and they played "Setting Sun" like 10 times a day
― bad milk blood robot (sleeve), Thursday, 3 February 2022 23:39 (two years ago) link
I actually do like "Let Forever Be". I think it wouldn't have been so much of an issue if they hadn't opted to work with Noel again.
Arguably the "working with male rock singers" gambit was almost a straight line of diminishing returns: "Life Is Sweet" = "Setting Sun" > "Let Forever Be" > "The Acid Test" > "The Golden Path".
If you played those in succession there would be a clear encroaching vibe I would compare to regulatory capture: the CBs gradually forgetting that the point was to take the rock-association and forge something new with it, rather than just come up with an arrangement that would complement the peccadillos of the guest vocalist.
― Tim F, Thursday, 3 February 2022 23:56 (two years ago) link
otm imo
― bad milk blood robot (sleeve), Thursday, 3 February 2022 23:58 (two years ago) link
One thing about Let Forever Be is it does not buzzsaw through your skull the way Setting Sun does. It’s also a way more overt Tomorrow Never Knows rip
The line “how does it feel like?” bothers the shit out of me though
Fwiw I really like “The Acid Test”. “Golden Path” sucks though.
― frogbs, Friday, 4 February 2022 00:48 (two years ago) link
you mean The Test, right? or is there another track called The Acid Test?
― scanner darkly, Friday, 4 February 2022 02:39 (two years ago) link
ok so I never actually bought a copy of Come With Us, I downloaded it way back when MP3s were always mistagged so I assumed that was just the actual name of the song
― frogbs, Friday, 4 February 2022 02:54 (two years ago) link
Yeah I just mean "The Test" - when I think of the song all I can hear in my head is Richard Ashcroft asking "did I pass the acid test?", and it's up there with "how does it feel like?" as one of the more annoying questions asked in modern music.
― Tim F, Friday, 4 February 2022 03:30 (two years ago) link
otm, I like The Test apart from that so if is a bummer
― brisk money (lukas), Friday, 4 February 2022 03:44 (two years ago) link
all the lyrics in that song are annoying but the pure beauty of the "are you feeling me like I'm feeling you" part makes up for it
― frogbs, Friday, 4 February 2022 03:46 (two years ago) link
interesting to compare all these to Out of Control which seems to be the opposite, the boys just enjoying themselves
― scanner darkly, Saturday, 5 February 2022 04:14 (two years ago) link
You know what other song sounds like the boys just enjoying themselves, is "The Salmon Dance"
― castanuts (DJP), Sunday, 6 February 2022 18:02 (two years ago) link
lol
― scanner darkly, Sunday, 6 February 2022 18:18 (two years ago) link
The Salmon Dance sounds like the boys trying to write Gorillaz song. Possibly even a Plastic Beach song, 3 years before that album even came out.
― MarkoP, Sunday, 6 February 2022 22:16 (two years ago) link
Salmon Dance is fun I just wish the album it was on was better
― frogbs, Sunday, 6 February 2022 23:31 (two years ago) link
That album is good, though. “We Are The Night” and “Battle Scars” are fantastic and I am not part of the posse that dislikes “The Salmon Dance”
― castanuts (DJP), Monday, 7 February 2022 01:18 (two years ago) link
Not as good as their last one but new album is still pretty good. Wasn't sure about some of the singles but they work really well in the context of the album.
― groovypanda, Friday, 8 September 2023 19:49 (six months ago) link
This is about more than just the Chemical Brothers but I didn't know which thread would be best
https://musictech.com/news/industry/the-chemical-brothers-touring-us-not-viable/
― StanM, Wednesday, 20 September 2023 16:19 (six months ago) link
I noticed Geoff Barrow (the Portishead guy) say this on social media:
I can’t stand the chemical brothers never haveAwful music for dullards
Cool guy!
― stylized in all lowercase (morrisp), Wednesday, 20 September 2023 16:27 (six months ago) link
only single I've heard is "Live Again" which has one of the coolest guitar sounds I've ever heard
wanna grab it on vinyl but man it's so expensive
― frogbs, Wednesday, 20 September 2023 16:27 (six months ago) link
Geoff being a silly billy yet again
― you can see me from westbury white horse, Wednesday, 20 September 2023 16:35 (six months ago) link
Not as good as their last one but new album is still pretty good.
Yeah, it didn't grab me right away like the last one did, and it seems to have fallen into a crack in the earth as far as press coverage. I'll give it another listen this week, though.
― read-only (unperson), Wednesday, 20 September 2023 16:35 (six months ago) link
It's a good album but... maybe my least favourite. Too early to tell.
the-chemical-brothers-touring-us-not-viable/
huge thanks to Tom & Ed for playing Seattle in between the two weekends of Coachella this year
― vashti funyuns (sic), Wednesday, 20 September 2023 17:36 (six months ago) link
Not that surprising. It's not like they're jusrlt taking a drumkit and some guitars and synths with them. Their current live set up includes two 30ft tall robots that shoot lasers from their eyes ffs
― groovypanda, Wednesday, 20 September 2023 18:40 (six months ago) link
The other pre-album singles did nothing for me but Live Again might be my favourite thing I've ever heard them do
― boxedjoy, Wednesday, 20 September 2023 19:44 (six months ago) link
Listening to the new one right now, I get what folks are saying about it — it’s consistent, solid, and enjoyable, just doesn’t blow minds or anything.
― The Triumphant Return of Bernard & Stubbs (Raymond Cummings), Sunday, 24 September 2023 15:48 (six months ago) link
On a sidenote, it’s startling to look at the overall discography and realize how much music these guys put out in the 21st century that I’ve just … totally missed those album cycles somehow
― The Triumphant Return of Bernard & Stubbs (Raymond Cummings), Sunday, 24 September 2023 15:49 (six months ago) link
(The new record reminds me, in some ways, of buying a Crystal Method album in like 2004 - it was fine, or a little better than fine, you know?)
― The Triumphant Return of Bernard & Stubbs (Raymond Cummings), Sunday, 24 September 2023 15:59 (six months ago) link
boxedjoy otm Live Again is pure gold, who knew all I wanted from life was a My Bloody Valentine / Todd Edwards mashup
― Xgau Murder Spa (nikola), Monday, 25 September 2023 13:45 (six months ago) link
New album is nice on first listen, but maybe like a slightly less thumping retread of the last one?
― ...eh you get the gist of it (dog latin), Monday, 25 September 2023 18:22 (six months ago) link
not heard the new one yet but this made me smileWe used to get quite tongue-tied around him (Weatherall). I remember being in a nightclub asking him what synths he’d bought. He said: “I’m waiting for the Chekhov Warp.” Which I took to mean a new synth we hadn’t heard of. A couple of weeks later I realised he meant he was waiting for the “cheque off Warp” records to buy new equipment, so when we remixed Saint Etienne’s Like a Motorway we called it the Chekhov Warp mix.
― nashwan, Thursday, 19 October 2023 17:49 (five months ago) link
lol, that's fantastic.
― Maxmillion D. Boosted (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Thursday, 19 October 2023 17:51 (five months ago) link
Sick remix too - and new to me!
― octobeard, Thursday, 19 October 2023 18:37 (five months ago) link
the more you hear re weatherall, the more you love him.
― mark e, Thursday, 19 October 2023 19:25 (five months ago) link