I had a feeling from the start, that this album being called Classics would bite itself in the ass. Yeah, it’s got that “classic” Ratatat sound, but there’s no expansion upon it - it feels like they learned nothing in the last couple of years. That sweeping synth sound and pseudo-hop beats are back, with the same ol’ rollercoaster arpeggiated progression.
“Lex” quickly rehashes their bouncesynth specialty - but with harpsichord(!) support . “Wildcat” actually features a wildcat growling, which is cool, but that’s about as innovative as it gets. “Loud Pipes” is a slow, clappy stomp only teasing your ethereal side with sonar drops. “Nostrand” creeps along decently, but blasts back into the same ol’ synth wails. DJs with guitars have gone too far.
This album made me decide to avoid their upcoming show, for boredom’s sake. I envision thrusting hips and cemented feet. It’s not a dance album, it’s not a chill album, it’s not that exciting. It’s that not-so-fresh feeling.
Not sure if you’ve heard it yet, but Asobi Seksu - Citrus is crazy good. With an 8.3 from pitchfork it is one of the most underrated of the year.
Comment by noah popp — July 13, 2006 @ 8:45 am
I think I listened to it once, but ran out of hard drive space and it became a casualty.
Now that I’ve got a bitchin new 120 gigs from Sambot, I’ll re-gank it.
From what I remember, it was pretty good
Comment by chris — July 13, 2006 @ 9:02 am