The Chemical Brothers rode the Big Beat wave of the late 90s to mainstream success, but while other groups (we’re looking at you Prodigy) have become less relevant, Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons have managed to keep up with the times while staying true to their sound. Eclecticism has always been the strength of the Chemical Brothers and with their seventh studio album Further they continue to develop musically.  Finding a comfortable balance between hard beats and folk influences, Further includes some of the best material from this duo in years.

Further is definitely a journey that must be experienced from beginning to end. The album starts off with some bizarre distortion that gives way to a floating vocal refrain of  “Lifting me higher”  on the aptly title “Snow” before finally dropping into the frenzied nearly 12 minute acid roller that is “Escape Velocity.” The progression between tracks is so gradual and unnoticeable you would think you were at one of the Brothers’ famed live performances. Even though Further is just 8 tracks, the tracks have a truly organic feel that makes them stretch and swirl into unexpected places, making the album feel like 15 tracks.

The album does seem to favor some of the hippie overtones that the Brothers are occasionally known for, most noticeably on tracks such as “K+D+B” and the album closer “Wonders of the Deep”, which both consist of whimsical vocals and indie rock flavors. But when Further flexes its acid house muscles as on the menacing “Horse Power” or channels pure rave bliss on “Another World”, the Chemical Brothers remind us why they have maintained their dominance over dance music for so long.

- Norman Mayers

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