Review #2: Chemical Brothers

The Chemical Brothers- “Push The Button”
(Astralwerks)
8 out of 10

Picture links to Chemical Brothers' website and was nicked from Amazon.com

I was quite excited when I heard the first single off “Push The Button”, “Galvanize”. The Chemical Brothers, a.k.a. Manchester, England big-beat veterans Ed Simons and Tom Rowlands, have created a sound for themselves, which I like to describe as an ornate, grandiose acid-house. But “Galvanize” was nothing like this. It was more of a hip-hop oriented track with a slight middle-eastern flavor and an impressive guest appearance from Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest. I loved it initially, but then I remembered it was a Chemical Brothers track. Wha?!?!?
My anticipation towards the release of “Push The Button” was fueled by this slight deception, yet at the same time I was afraid that the whole album would have this totally different feeling to it. Oh, did it ever. But, after a few listens, I discovered I had absolutely nothing to be scared of.
The album starts beautifully, with “Galvanize”, a jittery track called “The Boxer” featuring a spastic appearance from the Charlatans’ Tim Burgess, and the pumping rave anthem “Believe” featuring Kele Okereke of the much-hyped, up-and-coming UK band Bloc Party. Other gems on the album include the frisky “Come Inside”, quirky “The Big Jump”, and a surprisingly impressive slow-paced, vocally driven tune entitled “Close Your Eyes”. Another well-done middle eastern track is found in “Shake Break Bounce”, which is followed by a throwback to the Chems’ glory days, “Marvo Ging”, which just screams “Use me in a car ad ASAP! I’ll make anything seem cool!”
The effort’s not without it’s faults though. “Hold Tight London” is a snoozer, much like the album closer, “Surface To Air”. And I am just flat out embarrassed by “Left Right”, a political anthem with a tacky beat that relies heavily on guest rapper Anwar Superstar. It sounds sadly like it was produced by Jazze Pha or something. I guess some musicians are better off leaving political messages behind in their music.
The pluses outweigh the minuses heavily however, which leaves “Push The Button” as a pleasing listen for any electronica fan. If you’re looking to introduce yourself to the Chems, though, I would recommend much more 1997’s “Dig Your Own Hole” or maybe 1999’s “Surrender”.

Key Tracks: "Believe", "Close Your Eyes", "Marvo Ging"