In Our Heads

9/10 any girl born after 1993 can’t cook… all they know is mcdonald’s, charge they phone, twerk, be bisexual, listen to hot chip & lie

This album is actually something I'd add to my playlists. They are considered British Electronic Pop, but there are definitely some chill indie elements to it favorite track: Look at Where We Are (possibly the best song I've found during this project so far)

I was excited about this one after reading Apple Music's little write-up for it. I liked it, but didn't love it. At times I really, really liked it, and at other times, I felt like it was ostentatious hipster trash.

I found myself enjoying this more than I thought I would (like, way more), so I went back for another listen and it sounds like they're deliberately echoing some rather famous songs to get you to pay attention and then switching up the formula. It's actually kind of clever in a couple of spots. Unfortunately, there are also way too many moments that are just generic dance music, which is a shame, because I started off wanting to hate this album, and then after some time I really wanted to love it, but I couldn't quite get there. I've settled on "I'm glad somebody made me listen to this because I never would have chosen it." Best track: Let Me Be Him

It wasn't bad nor good, it was like listening to nothing. No feelings at all. I really have nothing to say about it. Seriously, nothing better for the 2010 decade?

Sounds like savourless rice cereals that you stare at as it gets all soaked in milk on a Monday morning's depression. How is this important in music history?

Love Hot Chip's blend of alt-pop and dance music. They make really interesting tracks and this album is up there.

This totally surprised me. It is so unabashedly upbeat and happy that it at first it put me off, then after a song or two I was all in. I’m going to be checking out more from this group, because god knows I could always use some extra smiles. TERRIFIC!

One of the few albums that brings back memories of where I was when I was listening to it for the first time: walking next to the Cannon River in Minnesota on a warming spring day, hearing the opening tuba pomp of “Motion Sickness” and being immediately entranced by how familiar and odd it was at the same time. Hot Chip weren’t the first example of a live band doing electronic music I’d ever heard before, but I hadn’t really heard anyone else do music like this. Of course, having listened to infinitely more music in the intervening 12 years (including a *lot* more Hot Chip), the sound itself is less novel, but the presentation seems more novel than ever. Just in the first three songs, you have the aforementioned tuba/arpeggiating synth of “Motion Sickness” leading into the thumping kicks of “How Do You Do?” leading into the bombastic R&B-pop of “Don’t Deny Your Heart”. Everyone loves “Flutes” for being probably one of the best buildups in dance music, and I like it a lot too, but I take greater pleasures in other moments: the slinky vocals of “These Chains”, the unique romanticism of “Let Me Be Him”. Around this time, I got into Hot Chip’s live act, and they still remain my favorite live band even I don’t really believe in my hyperlaudatory stance that they’re the best live band currently working anymore. That live show still influences my opinion of this album…but I still love this album deeply. I’m glad a lot of you really liked it, too.

With most songs of this album, Hot Chip manages to beat LCD Soundsystem on its own turf--a turf filled with cold yet infectious grooves drawing from EDM regalia, eighties sugary vocal hooks, krautrock-inspired dirges, and adequate callbacks to Pet Shop Boys, Prince or Steely Dan. On paper this sort of description risks coming off like a cheesefest, but Alexis Taylor and co. very often avoid that pitfall by relying on tense and tight *minor* harmonies, giving a little substance or gravitas to the admittedly festive proceeedings. Those sorts of harmonies are the secret sauce here. Otherwise, I don't think I would like that menu as much as I do now. Only two tracks come off as awkward or hackneyed, in a The 1975 fashion: They're "Don't Deny Your Heart" on the first half, and "Now There Is Nothing" on the second. But the rest is excellent, from the somewhat ominous opener "Motion Sickness" to house-music-adjacent jam "Flutes" (concluding on a surprising and quite sophisticated chord sequence to boot!). Or from the touching, subtly layered, and surprisingly restrained and concise ballad "Look At Where We Are" to the maniacal, devilish, and syncopated off-kilter rythms of "Night And Day". So minus the two partially forgivable duds quoted earlier, the tracklisting of this LP offers a very dynamic experience of Hot Chip's talents--with songs that are both in the same vein and yet varied enough to offer fresh and new angles on that sound, and this up until the very last cut. Quite impressive. And fun, considering I wasn't too attuned to this sort of experimental pop sound when this record originally came out. I remember seeing the band live in a festival around *In Our Heads*'s release, though, and even back then I admitted they were a strong act. But, as I said, I didn't expect to like this album as much as I do now. I'm probably more open-minded to this sort of sound these days--even though said sound aged a little. Because what's interesting in that particular strand of indietronica is that it takes the best of both the indie and the dancefloor worlds in ways where the mix sounds natural and enticing. Not so easy to pull off. And even more admirable when you realize how stong the writing is, often allowing Hot Chip to avoid pure gimmickry--a flaw often found in that sort of mash-up genre. I browsed through a lot of other Hot Chip albums after listening to this one, by the way. You have stellar gems in some of them--like "Over And Over", "Boy From School" and the title track on *The Warning* ; or "One Life Stand" on the LP that bears that song's name... Yet it's clear to me that *In Our Heads* is the band's most convincing offer in a long format. As of now, at least. Sometimes hits are not what makes a record great. Sometimes it's the overall story, or the whole adventure, whether the latter are in an LP, a film or just in your heads. Glad Hot Chip got that particular "story" out from theirs. 4.5/5 for the purposes of this list, rounded up to 5. Which translates to a 9.5/10 grade for more gemeral purposes (4.5 + 5). Number of albums left to review: 232 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 332 (including this one) Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 195 Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 248

A small part of me wants to insist that Hot Chip makes some pretty bad music, but it just goes directly into a specific part of my brain and pulls all the right levers. It's instant dopamine and completely addictive.

Bro what the hell this is some of the best music I’ve ever heard. How have I never heard of this band. Easy 10/10

What an awesome sound! I'd never heard of Hot Chip before this and I had no idea what to expect, but this was marvelous. Such rich sounds and great music, great hooks, great beats, great performances. Just wonderful all around. I liked it so much I'm going to listen to it again. Five stars, easily.

BL: this is my first 100% “blind listening” do not know anything about any of the members and after a quick google around I can’t see any obvious links other than they wrote a song for Katy Perry a long time after this album came out - so I will give it a listen. AL: wow. I thought this album was great! Very cool electronic pop album which reminded me a lot of Air, The Postal Service and at some points Daft Punk. The synth hooks and vocal lines were incredibly catchy and offer a lot of Lo-Fi groove similar to some of LCD Soundsystem’s “Sounds of Silver” album. This was very appealing to listen to the whole way through - I absolutely loved tracks 1-7, the last 4 tracks however I felt were slightly weaker than the previous 2/3rds of the album. I highly recommend this overall and would definitely think it’s worth the listen, Favourite tracks: “Motion Sickness”, “Don’t Deny Your Heart”, and “Night and Day” 4/5

Great album, except for the singer’s voice

Hot Chip is not exactly the Michelangelo of electronic music. Luckily it’s often much more fun to hang out with his dumber brother and just enjoy yourself.

A good summer record! Bouncy and sunny, but not without depth and a bit of drama. Celebrating life, being together, being human, what's not to like? It's ironic that it's called 'in our heads', given how much it makes me want to get out of my head. And it sometimes succeeds. This would probably be a really fun live act.

I've been a fan of Hot Chip for a while, though I haven't listened to this album before. I've always seen them as a singles band, the few albums I've listened to are inconsistent (at their lowest: mid, at their best: fantastic), this album hasn't really changed my opinion on that, however this is the most consistent they've been. The highs on this album (obvious picks are Motion Sickness, and Flutes, but I'd put Night and Day in there too) are nothing short of phenomenal, Flutes in particular (I knew the song prior to listening to the album) is one of the best pop songs of the 21st century in my opinion. The songs in-between are for the most part quite well put together, there's a few dips in quality, but there is a pretty significant gulf between these songs and their best.

Great soft electronica with clear British vocals and elements of indie rock. Will re visit on a club stereo.

Weird, groovy, dance-friendly. Good ebb and flow to the tracks. A fun and memorable listen. Best song: How Do You Do?

3.5. Starts off with a bang and some great house inspired tunes later on

This one had a strong start that honestly took me by surprise, and the album was really listenable as a whole. This allowed me to have some fun with a genre that I wouldn't otherwise spend any time with. More importantly, it got me through some schoolwork that I had been procrastinating for weeks, and for that I am most grateful.

tepid and flacid. Not sure why anyone would make this album.

This didn't achieve what I wanted. Underwhelming

Pretty inconsequential. There is just nothing here for me.

Music for those who find the Pet Shop Boys too edgy and hard-hitting. New Order-lite or Depeche Mode-lite. In fact, lightness to the point that it seems ready to drift off in to the ether and evaporate entirely. This is not to say that it's excellently evanescent or lusciously luminous, but rather that it's vanishingnly insubstantial. Rather it wants to bring back the '80s in non-salubrious ways, those bits that were surely left behind. One supposes it might be considered danceable, but one doesn't personally condone such activity or necessarily consider danceability a merit in evaluting albums for deathbead worthiness (as if one will be dancing then and there). The odd hook comes thru – the guitar (perhaps not synthesized) hookiness on "Don't Deny" – but the overall effect is of disposable and forgettable pop music. The last cut "Always Been Your Love" is best, a modestly tuneful pop bon-bon that features actual guitars and string (rather than a wall of sugary, synthy silliness) though it's possible one was just relieved at finally being able to move on to something else. And let's be honest, their later work hasn't much exceeded the promise suggested by one of the titles here – "Now There Is Nothing." They've not got any better and still somehow get airtime (adding annoyance to one's overall Hot Chip experience). The name is cool, too; one expects a surf punk band maybe, or something maybe Strokes-like and the unpleasant surprise must also be considered a knock against this exceedingly modest, humble-for-a-reason work.

I think this album spent too much time trying to catch the 80's and kinda threw everything else out the window. it has some fun here and there but the majority was unlistenable (Motion Sickness set the bar pretty well for what to expect).

A big meh

Not as bad as I thought it would be, but the overly electronica songs are too much. 2 stars.

Dull dull dull

This kind of 'knowing' pop leaves me cold. I don't really get what they are trying to say here, beyond the slushy 'quirky' love song vibes. One of those bands that takes what they think are the 'best' bits from lots of others who have gone before, without seemingly adding much of their own. Bad Disco Pop that adds nothing new to music.

Sometimes I really hate doing this. I can only hope for a better selection tomorrow. Why is this here? WHY?!

After getting more post 2000s albums I feel like the author could’ve used some help on what albums were actually influential during this time. This album is not influential in any way. I just feel like the author randomly heard this one day and liked it so put it on the list. It’s just safe synth pop. And I hate post 2000s synth pop. I guess points because I didn’t actively hate it? But that’s why I usually hate synth pop. It’s safe and makes me feel absolutely nothing. It makes me feel bad I rated other albums lower bc at least they were trying something new and made me feel hate. Rating: 1.5

Nope. That hour felt like three.

Meh. Your heads weren’t so interesting to me.

barely listenable

Trite and tedious. People who dislike synth and/or electronic music: I get you, I really do. When a record like this is held up as a reference point, I fucking hate it too. The only difference between this record and the 80’s synth pop records that this list so fond of, is that there’s 30 years between them. There are plenty of great electronic musicians making interesting, innovative and challenging music, like Oneohtrix Point Never, or Floating Points or Fourtet, but they don’t rank for the creators of this list, apparently. …but if you’re making some shit in the 2010’s that sounds like it should’ve come out 1986…Congrats and welcome to the list! I really, truly, hated this record. Here’s 3 records you should listen to instead: Floating Points - Crush (2019) Fourtet - Rounds (2003) Oneohtrix Point Never - Again (2023)

Had geen idee wat te verwachten. En dit album bleef nummer na nummer verrassen. Ik werd er zowaar erg vrolijk van. Toffe ontdekking!

It's so good

Look at where we are is a beautiful song, and it is surrounded by a vast array of energies, each presented in sometimes chaotic, sometimes soothing electronic sounds.

Why have I never heard of Hot Chip before?!

This is incredible, so original and funky

Love it! Where has this been? How did I not know about this? I can't stop listening! Night and Day. <3

So stoked this is on the list. One of the greatest albums of the 21st century. Fond memories of waking Mit around Norman Park on Friday arvo with a beer in hand and this on the iPod. Start to finish perfection.

Never heard of this guys, love the album, I'm now a fan

Unexpectedly loved it. Maybe because I was getting soaked by rain on my bike while listening and it somehow made me less grumpy about it

Great album.

I've listened to Hot Chip a little ("Ready For the Floor"'s cool video was on my iPod video back in the day), but never dove super deep in. It has always amazed me these five, accountant-looking British guys can make legitimately great dance music. I'm surprised how much I enjoyed this album; it sounds like a killer remix album for an already-killer pop album. I think it stumbles once or twice ("Now There Is Nothing", and how do you not use "Let Me Be Him" as the closer?), so I'd call this a 4.5. I'm rounding up due to the fact I threw it back on once I had finished, which hasn't happened frequently on this list. Favorite tracks: "These Chains", "Night And Day", "Flutes", "How Do You Do?"

nice

sweet treat time

Boppy, hot chip is great for a bit of funky, chill listening with great beat, fun vocals. Each track is pretty great with no real weak ones.

The hipster band it's ok to like.

Solid follow up from Hot Chip

A classic 2010s album. Some real bangers on this one.

Excellent album! Forgot how much I like these guys. Every song was great. I’ve been skipping over them on shuffle lately but they’re an awesome band

Awesome vibes.

One of the best of the decade.

Yeahhhhhh 🙌🏼

Ambient, funky, poppy, whimsical, sad lyrics

I can’t stop listening to it, so easy and relaxed

LOVE IT

Certain albums I already have in my record collection, and this one is WELL WORN. Hot Chip are a collection of gearheads with encyclopedic knowledge of music and channel it into this blend of live house music with pop structures. Beyond that, for a band that came out of the "indie-sleaze" era, these well-written songs have an amazing balance of equal parts heart and humor. This one takes me back and I'll always keep circling back to Hot Chip, and this is one of their finest and most cohesive of their catalogue.

Never heard of these guys… I really enjoyed this album. Good chill songs

Really enjoyed this entire LP Gave my new Subwoofer a good workout

I was miffed the album with Over and Over wasn’t on this list. I owned that album in the 2000s. I was pleasantly surprised by this one. Seems like a cool record to put on to impress people with your indie cred.

Great album that somehow passed me by. I only knew 1 of the tracks from before. Will be listening again

I don’t really agree with the classification of In Hour Heads, by Hot Chip, as electronica. Yes, those sweet synths and and beeps are there, but the album has a sort of rock indie taste in as well, a little pop. That’s why I feel like I like it so much. From the jump, with Motion Sickness, it feels like this grand opening to a movie song, with compelling instrumentals and perfect cadence. The next 5 songs go on to be equally as good, with How Do You Do? being one of my favorite electronic songs ever. I’m looking forward to more music like this, as this is probably the most versatile and diverse album this project has taken me to. All in all, In Our Heads Is an amazing album. Best Song: How Do You Do? Worst Song: Let Me Be Him

This album, as well as Why Make Sense, represents to me the best of the music taste my brothers passed down to me. They showed me much of what I came to enjoy, and I associate each of these albums with them for different reasons. Current #25 of all time. Thanks, bros.

For some reason I lost interest in Hot Chip after One Life Stand, but In Our Heads really good as well. It took a few listens, but even the songs I wasn't sure about initially turned out to be pretty strong.

Yeah, Hot Chip is a great band and this might be their most consistent effort and it got Flutes, so 5 stars.

One of my favourite albums. Had this on repeat during my early twenties so it holds quite a bit of sentimental value. Flutes is on my list of all time top tracks.

Damn fine album

This contains my favourite Hot Chip song, Flutes, and Hot Chip are one of my favourite bands so has to be 5! HOT POTATO, HOT POTATO!!

Well it's an absolute belter isn't it. Hot Chip are grand as they come. DON'T DENY YOUR HEART

Seriously great britpop/indie/electronic (?) album. I listened to a bit of Hot Chip growing up but never this album. The track Look At Where We Are is so good, I listened to it at least 3 times. I'll definitely be blasting their whole discography. 5 stars for me.

очень напомнило джойвейв

The first half of this is a perfect stretch of songs

They’re good Hot Chip, I should listen to them more.

I really enjoyed this, I’m not that into electronica but this was great I kinda feel it’s a genre I can slowly woo myself into going from any old rock band to something like the killers to MGMT to this is slowly moving my tastes into that indie electronica direction. Maybe one day I’ll find enjoyment in one of those mostly instrumental ones but not for now. 4/5

Flute is an amazing track

Good, upbeat synth pop music with "novelty" guitar song! Gets under your skin and is pretty infectious.

This is one banging record! 4 Goddamn "Flutes" is fucking fire

Loved it - superb album which I will get on vinyl.

Я, когда только ознакомился с жанрами альбома, и увидел год, не ожидал если честно от него ничего хорошего, но я был очень удивлён, когда его начал слушать. Этот альбом создан в таком жанре, как индитроника, и он мне очень понравился. Идеальная околодиско/синтипоповая электронника с современными прибамбасами. Слушается очень легко, и полно хороших мелодий.

It was really refreshing to get a chill and relaxed electronica album for once. Not big beats and harsh sounds, just some good vibes that would be nice to listen to as you’re hanging out with a small group or something. Flutes was my fav.

Hyvää elektronista poppia ja monen tyyppistä. These Chains tai joku hyvä uk carage viba ja flutes kova

this was kinda sick actually

Feels like the lovechild of Two Door Cinemas Club, Chemical Brothers, the synths of CVRCHES, and dance of Flight Facilities. Overall good, and one of the first albums from this list that I really did enjoy.

4.0 - Reminds me of Brooklyn house parties in the 2010’s. Indie dance music. Dip a baby carrot in some hummus. Crack a beer you brought and put the rest in the fridge. Take a hit off this joint sitting in the ashtray. Find a seat by the open window and admire the sunny view.

Helt bra, mot förmodan! Svag fyra

Groovy. Indie electronic dance done right

I love this album. Great grooves, great singing. Not sure why I haven't fallen in love previous, but this album has really grown on me.

This album sounded like some shit that would've been on my 2012 Pandora radio, but a hell of a lot catchier.

I haven't listened to a great deal of Hot Chip and, yeah, this was pretty good - "Motion Sickness" sounds like slavish New Order worship, but they mixed things up enough as the album went on to hold my interest. Fave track - "Flutes" - it's got a prog house thing going on - reminded me a lot of Nathan Fake's "The Sky Was Pink" which is one of my all time faves!

Don't mind myself a bit of Hot Chip. Fave tracks are Don't Deny Your Heart, Night and Day, and Let Me Be Him.

I don’t know what to make of this album but I guess… do I like it? Yes. Is it a great album? No. Do I want to listen to it again in the future? Yes. I liked the prior hot chip album a lot and this one feels like a polished evolution. It’s not an obvious easy album but maybe that is what makes it feel a little special.

Groovy and upbeat. Fun listen!

This music is great to put on in the background. It's inoffensive, not very loud or hectic and pleasant. But not what I'd actively listen to in my spare time.

I thought this had a lot more going on than most of its genre ilk, particularly in sound variety and vocals. The songs never drag on to wear out their welcome as so often happens in the dance/Electronica spectrum.

I honestly didn't expect to like this very much, but then found it really nice, easy listening during work. Relaxed but fun - nothing challenging, but good vibes.