Hot Chip Mess With Their Songs

04/10/08 5:00pm

by Erik Leijon (CHARTattack)

More ardent Canadian fans of British electro-pop quintet Hot Chip may have already memorized every frantic note of their third studio album, Made In The Dark. But by the time the band commence their extended North American tour, the songs may sound considerably different than on the record.

"We get bored very quickly, so we swap things around to keep us interested," says guitarist Al Doyle of their amorphous material. "At the same time, they're flexible structures and we're not so beholden to the recording. The album is more like a document of the song at that time."

On Hot Chip's previous records, including the 2006 Mercury Music Prize-nominated The Warning, the largely electronic songs were composed entirely by founding members Alexis Taylor (vocals, keyboards) and Joe Goddard (synthesizers, vocals) in Goddard's bedroom. On Made In The Dark, they experimented with recording live for the first time with all five group members. The three tracks that received this treatment were "Shake A Fist," "One Pure Thought" and "Hold On." The latter began as a simple demo from Goddard before the band added more percussion to make the song as energetic as possible.

"I think the mindset has changed slightly," Doyle says. "Even the songs that weren't recorded in a live setting, I think we tried to give them more of a live feel."

Because of this new set-up — which allowed for Doyle, Owen Clarke (guitars, synths) and Felix Martin (drum machines) to play a greater role in shaping the ever-expanding and evolving Hot Chip sound — guitars are featured far more prominently than on previous outings. Doyle admits the group were listening to a lot of Black Sabbath and — in his case, Johnny Cash — while making the record. Including more guitar was part of the plan to utilize less programming and make the album more lively than the clinical and cleaner The Warning.

"We've always been interested in the difference between acoustic instruments and synthetic instruments in the recordings and the interplay between them," Doyle says. "But I think we've gotten better at bringing those different nuances out."

On Made In The Dark, the group also wrote four more traditional R&B songs, eschewing their typical chaotic hook-laden songwriting for more simple balladry. Doyle thinks newer Hot Chip fans might be a little surprised at the quiet title track or the soulful "In The Privacy Our Love," but admits the group never had a clear, defined musical style.

"It's quite an odd album. I think people will have to live with it for a bit longer, and then they can make an opinion on it later on."

Let Hot Chip be your number one guys at these Canadian shows:

April 15 Montreal, QC @ Metropolis
April 16 Toronto, ON @ Masonic Temple (1:30 p.m. pre-tape performance for MTV Live)
April 16 Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix Concert Theatre
April 21 Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom