Hot Chip - Ready For The Floor

Hot Chip, "Ready For The Floor" (YSI link) 320

Hot Chip, "Ready For The Floor (Soulwax dub)" (YSI link) 320

There are just some times when I don't want to be writing, when life just seems a little too much. Sadly, this is one of those times; while a new, hopeful year has begun, someone very dear to me left the country today and I feel sad and empty. When I feel lost like this, music always helps me to find my way.

What better way to start the year out than by looking ahead to the most anticipated album of early 2008, Hot Chip's newest LP. Yes, I know that this has been all over the Internets and you probably already have it, but whatever, just be glad I'm not just uploading The Smiths discography and writing sad face emoticons. Seriously though, I want to help spread the word and get people hyped for the record, as I'd love to see this album have some real mainstream success.

"Ready For The Floor" is the first single to leak from the album and it has come complete with remixes from some serious heavyweights - Soulwax, Jesse Rose and Diplo. The original is just what you would expect from the UK band, great dance pop music with that melancholic tinge that sets it apart from nearly all of dance music. It has an unhurried paceAs always for me, it's the lyrics and vocals that make me most happy, as Alexis Taylor's near-falsetto voice just sounds perfect to my ears. Add in lyrics about trying to get through to someone to dance with you and you've got yourself a good opening salvo. This is not as catchy or classic as the main singles from The Warning, but it's very good and grows on you after the first few listens. The Soulwax dub, on the other hand, doesn't need any second listen; it's a rager right out out of the gate. Dub is not the word I would describe this, as this is gnarly and rocking and awesome (not that dub can't be awesome, it's just awesome in a non-dubby way) At 8+ minutes, it takes the original on a few mini-trips, from

All of which is to say that Pound for Pound is even more psyched to hear the new album, Made In The Dark. Adding to that, Mixmag has already awarded the album Album of the Month status in their January '08 issue. You can pre-order the album from Insound in its deluxe edition or just sit tight until February 5th when it officially drops. Yeah! 2008!