Dig your own hole

The Chemical Brothers
  1. block rockin' beats
  2. dig your own hole
  3. elektrobank
  4. piku
  5. setting sun
  6. it doesn't matter
  7. don't stop the rock
  8. get up on it like this
  9. lost in the k-hole
  10. where do i begin
  11. the private psychedelic reel
Ben says:  What an amazing album! Fresh cuts, nice loops without getting repetitive, innovative samples... oh, sorry, I was talking about the first album there. This one's pretty good, but it doesn't really shine like the first. It does have some tracks on it that are even better than anything on Exit Planet Dust, namely 'setting sun' and 'the private psychedelic reel', but there are also some really annoying tracks that just thump, thump, thump, thunp on and on monotonously ('it doesn't matter').

Having said that, it's obvious that Tom and Ed are trying to push the album in a slightly different direction to the breakbeat-based Exit Planet Dust, and for that they should be congratulated, because the last thing that dance music needs is more of the same over and over again - not that some other bands seem to have noticed.

One novelty on this album compared to the humanless first is that some of the tracks actually have vocals, and vocals provided by Noel Gallagher, the seemingly ubiquitous Beth Orton (where does she find the time to make her own records?) and someone unknown to me - Kool Herc (I'm sure that Mr. Herc is a very nice young man), no less.

Oh and a note to the Chemicals if they should read this: what does the guy say on 'elektrobank'? Is it really "who is this, who is this synthetic type o' alpha bass psychedelic fucking"? I'm intrigued.
Ben gives it:yay!yay!yay!yay!duh!

mail me!back last updated: 12th April 1997