!!!: Myth Takes
Herald rating: * * * *
Verdict: Dance punk that plays with your head, man
Label: Warp/Border
LCD Soundsystem: Sound of Silver
Herald rating: * * * *
Verdict: The New York producer is back and he's getting down at your house
Label: EMI
Here's something a little noisy, crazy and clangy. !!! (most commonly pronounced chk chk chk) are an eight-piece from California whose beats and sound effects are just as nutty as their silly name.
!!!'s house-infused beats, with lashings of funk, soul and disco, remind you of late 80s/early
90s bands like the Shamen, Utah Saints and even, EMF. But the difference is they deliver the songs with more oomph and power thanks to their punk rock and hardcore roots.
It's no better realised than on the primal swing of Yadnus (a gem for the dance floor).
Then there are tracks like the sexy stomp and romp of Must Be the Moon and first single, Heart of Hearts, which ooze a sense of cool and make you feel pretty special as you're strolling down the street. The latter is a six-minute epic that chugs along, punctuated by staunch soul diva vocals, then in the last two minutes it shudders as it warps your mind.
But it's the ferocious din of Bend Over Beethoven that sums up the roguish fun that !!! have making their music. It's a hoot, and you can dance your arse off to it too.
On LCD Soundsystem's new album there's nothing as addictive as the hit Daft Punk Is Playing At My House. It's not a bad thing considering that tune from the 2005 self-titled debut almost became a novelty song. The thing was, it was no one-hit wonder and James Murphy (the singer, DJ, producer and remixer who is LCD Soundsystem) backed it up with one of the albums of the year.
It was also the best dance music album in years and he and !!! are the current saviours of dance music.
What LCD Soundsystem does this time round is not much different, although there are fewer standout tracks and it's more seamless as an album.
The oscillating and bleepy Someone Great has a choral choir feel to it; the tremulant and off-kilter keyboard of All My Friends is offset by Murphy's calm vocals and rests somewhere between Kraftwerk and Joy Division; and Us v Them has a deadpan version of the bass line from Kylie's Can't Get You Out of My Head running through it.
It's compelling, intelligent and most of all, fun dance music.
Us v Them is the perfect example of small details making all the difference - clattering bells make it celebratory and the subtle rhythm change two minutes in takes it to another place.
The songs trundle on and on effortlessly (nine in 60 minutes), and there's something familiar about all of them, probably because Murphy has so many records and he again wears his influences on his sleeve. For example: punked-up dance tune Watch the Tapes sounds like Warren Zevon's Werewolves of London.
Dance music hasn't sounded this much like pop music since Daft Punk, only this time it's LCD Soundsystem who you should have playing at your house.
