Hot Chip
Why Make Sense?
DOMINO
6/10
Having survived long enough to celebrate its crystal anniversary (that’s fifteen years, kids), Hot Chip can lay claim to outlasting many of its indie dance-rock contemporaries. So long, LCD Soundsystem. Pleasant travels, The Rapture. Long live Hot Chip! Let’s do accept, however, that musical middle age does not typically usher in increased libido, or anything resembling excess fortitude. Often the best one can hope for is to be able to maintain a visible show of interest.
Why Make Sense? is a noble addition to the British electro-band’s cannon; it brings a welcome dose of new wave disco-soul to the party, which was absent in many of the UK quintet’s more cerebral releases, yet maintenance of the bands turgidity is about all that the album delivers. There are some very good tracks, including the dark synth opener “Huarache Lights,” and the lovely synthless ballad “White Wine and Fried Chicken,” and no real stumbles. It’s solid, let’s leave it at that.
