Live Review – Hot Chip at the Roseland Theater
At this point in their 15+ year career, Hot Chip have become internationally known for their brand of contagiously danceable electronic music that seeks the stars constantly while simultaneously acknowledging the futility of such a quest. Everyone has to come down eventually, and Hot Chip’s music has always to me felt like using the dance floor as a means to rage against the dying of the light. That is especially true of their live shows, which have become something of legend at this point, and Tuesday night at the Roseland they once again showed why.
Deftly mixing some of the hotter tracks off of their just-released (and quite good) Why Make Sense? with a litany of bangers from their ever-growing list of classics, Hot Chip had the Roseland in their sweaty palms for the duration of the evening. It never ceases to amaze me that Alexis Taylor, Joe Goddard, Owen Clarke, Al Doyle and Felix Martin are able to absolutely just tear the roof off the place every time I’ve seen them, whether live, a festival webcast or a late night appearance, no one is safe from the inherent desire to get the fuck down that Hot Chip inspires.
Tuesday was no exception; whether you were one of the folks doing the “Awkward White Indie Dude Shuffle” or one of the people in the back dancing and dressed like they were at the world’s last rave, attacking the dance floor like it owed you money, you were boogieing. From the army of synths (a keyboard calvary if you will) onstage, to the band members’… unique outfits (XXXXL white tees, sweatpants from the darkest corners of 90s fashion) to Alexis Taylor bopping around the stage like a pint-sized madman overdosing on joy, Hot Chip’s exuberance matches that of the audience and in turn feed off of it.
By the time the band encored with a terrific rendition of “Dancing In The Dark” (and wondering aloud from the stage why the Roseland has such ridiculously inefficient alcohol policies), Hot Chip had reminded the ecstatic crowd how they earned their reputation as one of the best live acts on the planet, and one I never plan on missing.
