Currently enjoying “Don’t Turn the Lights On” by Chromeo

6 Music was abuzz yesterday with the news of its continued existence in the face of planned cuts. And really, who can blame them and their listeners alike for celebrating? When they weren’t spreading the word, they were doing what they always do: playing great music by a wide range of new and accomplished artists alike.

But as I’ve said before, it’s not just UK talent that gets its due on 6 Music; there are plenty of tracks by international artists, including some notable Canadians, that get their fair share of play. And one of the finer examples of the moment, which I heard for the first time yesterday, is a new Chromeo single called “Don’t Turn the Lights On.”

Currently streaming on the band’s website, “Don’t Turn the Lights On” is the latest single from the Montreal duo’s upcoming third album Business Casual. It stacks up against their best material, but it also suggests a new musical direction. Chromeo hasn’t lost their sense of fun, but they’re definitely getting more serious about what they do.

A little while back, I wrote a review for Chart of an album by another Montreal artist named Mathias Mental. I compared him a little unfavourably to Chromeo, pointing out that the latter “have so much fun doing what they do – and doing it well – that you automatically get sucked into it.”

That’s as true as it ever was in the case of the new single, but the sense of detached irony that you’d usually assign to Chromeo doesn’t apply here. There’s no joke to get, or even the sense of one. What you get instead is just a really solid track, and one worth checking out.

By the way, when you’re one of the few people to review an album by a relatively unknown act, and you happen to mention that review on your blog, you’ll find that “Mathias Mental” quickly becomes one of the leading search queries bringing people to it. And if the review wasn’t that flattering, then you might feel a little bit awkward about the attention. Sure, you’ll read the review again, and you’ll stand by it. But still, you know?

Posted in Currently Enjoying