Rapid Fire: New Album Reviews

Hot Chip - Made in the Dark


London's Hot Chip is back with their first set of all new material since the amazing Warning album of 2006. While, song for song, it doesn't hold up to it's predecessor, Made in the Dark has many moments of electro pop goodness. Check out "Bubbles they Bounce" and "Touch too Much" for proof.

Check it out of you like:

• Either of their first 2 albums
• LCD Soundsytem
• Junior Boys
• "Gay Party Music"
• Chicks who love "Gay Party Music"

Lightspeed Champion - Falling Off the Lavender Bridge


Lightspeed Champion released a great album last year that I just recently got around to hearing. Apart from having the best album cover I've seen in a while, along with some great (albeit deceiving) song titles like "Devil Tricks for a Bitch," "Everyone I Know is Listening to Crunk," and "Let the Bitches Die," the album also brings a solid collection of simple indie pop rock that doesn't shine in the innovation department, but doesn't have to. It simply delivers music that is accessible, catchy, and all-around solid.

Check it out if you like:

• Morrissey
• Elvis Costello
• The Stars
• Dudes with Mr. Rogers sweaters and yellow bowties.
  

Times New Viking - Rip It Off

Rip It Off brings you short catchy songs marinated with that great flavor of rock-- distortion. From Sonic Youth and The Pixies to Deerhoof and Love is All, Times New Viking have taken note from their Ragged Rock forefathers to bring one of those albums that grows on you with each listen. . . .Warning: listening at full volume will make your ears bleed. (And that's Awesome).

Check it if you like:

• Any of the bands listed in the above paragraph
  
• Treble
• Feedback
• Cassette recordings of your college garage jam sessions
  

Buy This Album: Vampire Weekend

The only thing wrong with Vampire Weekend's full-length debut is that it came out about 2 months too early. This album radiates Springtime. It's got too much meat to be a throw-away summer record, but just enough pep, jangle, and worldly rhythm to make you long for the sun and short sleeve shirts.

Lucky for me it was sunny and in the 60s in Tulsa today so my purchase of Vampire Weekend's highly-anticipated self-titled release was quite appropriate and made driving with the windows down all the more sweeter.

Genre-busting innovation isn't at play here as much as genre-updating or even genre-perfecting. You've heard the sound of white-boy college rock mixed with African influences before in bands like The Talking Heads and a post-Garfunkle Paul Simon. It's been a while, though, and Vampire Weekend does a great job at making the sound fresh and fun again.

And don't get me wrong, there's more than just the world-rhythm influence at play here. You'll find lots of good pop rock jingles and all-around tight musicianship.

Try it if you like any of the following:

• The Talking Heads
• The Strokes
• rhythm sections
• listening to whole albums
  
• Spring Break
• Ivy-League New Yorkers
  
• references to Lil John
• references to Peter Gabriel
• doing the "white-boy shuffle" (must include biting your lip while dancing)
  

LINKS AND OTHER ODDS & ENDS

You can find Vampire Weekend on their website and their MySpace.

Find free legal downloads of an exclusive performance over at Daytrotter.

Watch their awesome exclusive performances on The Take-Away Shows.

Check out their guestlist on Pitchfork to find out what the band themselves are into.

Results for a Google image search of "Vampire Weekend at Bernies" can be found here.