FriendBurst Blog

Colder is a one-man ‘band’ (the man being Marc Nguyen Tan; a DJ and remixer, from France).  There are only two albums (Again and Heat).  It’s a pity because Colder is one of my best ‘finds’.  It is a unique sound.  As the name suggests, the music is austere.  It is a stripped-down blend of electronics, guitars and drums.  The rhythms are strong and driving.  The vocals are minimal and repetitious.  Influences include Kraftwerk, Joy Division and The Clash.  If you like Interpol, you may find Colder enjoyable.  Colder is more ‘arty’ though.  Marc Nguyen Tan studied film at university and even made low-budget videos for some of the songs.  There were some interesting concepts.

The sound of The Chemical Brothers was fresh and exciting in the mid-nineties.  The knob-twiddlers had a good run (the first three albums were fantastic).  After the patchy Come With Us, a singles collection was released.  After another mediocre album (Push The Button) and the dreadful We Are The Night, an updated singles collection was released.  If you just want the best of The Chemical Brothers, I recommend going for the first compilation (Singles 93 – 03).  The limited edition is worth finding (it contains b-sides, remixes and rarities).  The bonus disc on Brotherhood is less impressive.  It is full of the duo’s self-indulgent (and mostly boring) Electronic Battle Weapon tracks.  You’ll probably only listen to it once.  There are two exclusive tracks on Brotherhood.  One of them is good (the euphoric Midnight Madness) and the other one is crap (the plodding Keep My Composure).  The Chemical Brothers released Further in 2010.  It was a return to form but not quite as good as the earlier material.  The DVD (Singles 93 – 03) is worth mentioning.  Most of The Chemical Brothers’ videos are excellent (some of the best directors were hired, including Spike Jonze and Michel Gondry).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=615FUp8aUmU&feature=related

Dave Clarke remixed The Chemical Brothers.  He also produced two solo albums – seven years apart.  Aside from the first and last tracks, Archive One (1996) is straight-forward techno (it’s all a bit monotonous).  Devil’s Advocate (2003) is more substantial.  It is still basically techno but there are elements from other genres (like hip-hop).  There is more variety, compared with Archive One.  For hardcore fans, there is a live album.  It comes with a DVD which contains two live shows (one is good and one is awful) and a short documentary (plus two promotional videos).  The CD includes three bonus remixes.  The Product 01 remix of What Was Her Name stands out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXLkjkfvdcc

In the years between Zwan and the reformation of The Smashing Pumpkins, Billy Corgan finally made his ‘solo’ album (it is effectively a collaboration with Bon Harris from Nitzer Ebb).  It is called The Future Embrace.  The rhythms are distorted throughout the album (evidently a deliberate attempt to make Corgan’s music sound industrial).  The abrasiveness is often quite irritating.  There are a few good songs on the album though (notably To Love Somebody, a Bee Gees cover with a guest performance by Robert Smith).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kG8CSPm6cjw

Further listening