The Chemical Brothers - 'We Are The Night' (Virgin) Released 02/07/07

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With this, the release of The Chemical Brothers’ sixth long-player, the big question is after fifteen years in the business can the golden boys of crossover dance music still cut it? All the ingredients are definitely here - the obligatory flavour-of-the-month contributors, the phat as fuck beats, and gallons of euphoria. Importantly too, in taking a more minimal direction in some places, Tom and Ed have evolved their sound just enough from their previous effort - 2005’s ‘Push The Button’ - to retain credibility and relevance in an ever shifting music scene. Yet, considered as a whole work, somehow it lacks the sparkle that has lit up so many of their previous outings.

However, despite the album being weighed down and muddied by its slightly uninspired moments, there are tracks of sheer brilliance to be found on ‘We Are The Night’. Lead single ‘Do It Again’, featuring their new chum Ali Love, is a prime example. Almost alien-sounding upon early listens, like many of The Chems’ finest moments it’s a grower in every possible sense - the sauntering grooves, Love’s funkadelic vocals and the repetitive taunts all slowly gnawing at you until you’re drawn in by its beguiling charm. The Klaxons guested ‘All Rights Reserved’ too is edgy and never quite takes you anywhere, but fuelled by its dark electronica, droning noises and tech-tinged clamour it all makes for another tour-de-force.

As mainstays of a genre of music that often takes itself far too seriously, ‘The Salmon Dance’ is a reminder that The Chems can in fact let their hair down when they want to. An almost nonsensical ditty hilariously narrated by Fatlip, it tells of the invention (“When I first did the Salmon all the people just laughed / They looked around and stood like I was on crack”) and subsequent dance floor domination (“By the end of the night everyone was on my team / And the whole club was dancing like a salmon floatin' up stream!”) of a new jig. Treading the fine line of tacky, it comes out the other side as a triumph and an album highlight.

For all these high points, elsewhere ‘We Are The Night’ shifts into less intriguing realms. For all the playful, squelchiness of the damn fun ‘Das Spiegal’ and ’A Modern Midnight Conversation’ or the progressive bleep-fest of ‘Burst Generator’, you can’t help but feel the lads have treaded these furrows many times before and to much better effect. Ultimate track ‘The Pills Won’t Help You Now’, featuring the talents of Midlake’s Tim Smith, is the example in point. What should have been a glorious finale to equal ‘Private Psychedelic Wheel’, instead is a waste of talents and wimpers out understatedly.

While they’re as relevant and essential as ever in the live arena, on record The Chemical Brothers are holding on by the skin of their teeth.