For That Beautiful Feeling

Ein atmosphärisch starkes Album, das die Energie der Chemical Brothers einfängt und mit modernen Sounds verbindet.

Here's the thing - it's good. In parts, it's even VERY good. But do you *need* to listen to it before you die? no, not at all. There are other albums in their discography that I would argue yeah, they're genre-defining classics, you should hear them at least once. But this one? I mean, listen to it if you like this sort of thing because it's pretty great, but it's not breaking any new ground. So why is it here?

And here is the rub: how do I rate this? because the author/editor of the book, Robert Dimery, has lost the plot. Completely. A couple days ago, I was within 10 albums of finishing this project, and now, suddenly, I have 28 left to go. Not a huge deal, I started this thing to listen to albums, obviously, but it's the albums that were added that is the problem - and the albums deleted.

I won't go into it, because I'm exhausted with it, but a quick google will show you the bullshit added (ANOTHER Rolling Stones album? From when they're all in their 80s? Really?), and the unfathomable decisions on what albums to remove (Mars Volta? Jurassic 5?). This, of course, in addition to the unforgivable snubs (Tool, Deftones, MF DOOM, Madvillian, J Cole).

This project has, sadly, lost all legitimacy, and I will be extremely glad to be done.

Geneeriseksi jäävää elektroa. Chemical Brothersilla on hetkensä, mutta ne on valitettavasti menneisyydessä.

I honestly forgot The Chemical Brothers even existed at this point, I mean they felt like middle-aged accountants 30 years ago when they were hammering out "Block Rockin Beats", and the last thing I remember hearing by them was "Galvanize" 20 years ago, proving that time truly is the fire in which we all burn...

Diving into this late career effort, I found myself torn between chuckling at the sheer absurdity of Robert Dimery padding out the new book edition with a third album from a legacy act and actually enjoying the surprisingly solid, squelchy house grooves and nostalgic 90s synths. Sure, it feels completely non-essential and derivative of their classic 90s peaks rather than pushing electronica forward in the 2020s, but it still flows nicely as a continuous, trippy rave-inspired DJ set with some standout tracks like "Live Again" and "No Reason". It’s an utterly pointless inclusion on a must-listen list that bypassed scores of more relevant modern electronic acts, yet despite my initial eye-rolling, I couldn't entirely hate a record that delivers a harmless, fun nostalgic bop.

This was nice.. I don't know why the authors would include a 3rd album from them.. Feels like they're not as relevant anymore.

Does the list need a late-period Chemical Brothers album? No, obviously not. But did I enjoy it? Yes, a lot. Some moments are quintessential Chemical Brothers, and others felt like a slight departure. Solidly a high four; if I'd encountered this on the user list, it would probably have been a five.

Another wasted addition to be honest..

For That Beautiful Feeling is a bit of a forgettable album from a band that I think was past its peak here. It’s not bad, certainly not, but it doesn’t quite land. The start is still there, with “Live Again” and “No Reason” showing some real quality, and “The Darkness That You Fear” is pretty good as well, even though it sits in the second half of the record. After the strong opening, though, the album falls off.

I didn’t like “Skipping Like a Stone” with Beck, “Feels Like I Am Dreaming” or the title track, and there are better albums out there in this style. There are even better late-career albums by the same band. In my opinion both Born in the Echoes and Further are better.

It certainly isn’t bad, but it’s absolutely not essential listening. A bit of a miss, I’m afraid.

🕺🕺🕺

Solid techno/house. I really like The Chemical Brothers. We had 2 more of their albums on this generator in the past (Exit Planet Dust, and Dig Your Own Hole) and both of those were really solid as well!

Favourite songs: No Reason, Live Again, The Weight, Feels Like I Am Dreaming, Goodbye, Skipping Like a Stone

Least favourite songs: none

5/5

I found this slight, but I've come to realise that there's not actually all that much to The Chemical Brothers: they lack the aggression and backbone of contemporaries like Underworld, Leftfield and The Prodigy, and they're not as dynamic and clean as Daft Punk. There are moments here, but it doesn't add up to anything that special.

Surprisingly solid, sounds contemporary while retaining their identity, incorporating some trippy neopsych rock elements ala tame impala. But a basically unremarkable album from an already well represented legacy artist - bit of a theme for the newest 13!

Dance music doesn't really work as an album, other than for studying, or dancing in a club. I was doing neither of those things.

This feels a little dated by electronica standards. Pretty danceable, but doesn't bring much new to the table.

Het derde album van de nieuwe editie van het boek. En wederom met een stevige digitale basis. Dat past in mijn straatje, maar ik zie een luistermaatje al door de grond zakken. Eerdere digitale albums met meer variatie kregen van hem al het label eentonig. Dus dit album zal vast een hele korte review van hem krijgen.

Maar ondanks dat ik naar het grootste deel van dit album prima naar kan luisteren, vraag ook ik mij af wat de toegevoegde waarde is van dit album. Vernieuwend is dit niet en de oudere albums van de Chemical Brothers in deze lijst zijn veel interessanter.

Dit album biedt af en toe een fijne bijna doorlopende bassdrum die niet eens dominant is. Bijvoorbeeld in het nummer met Beck. Maar dit album biedt af en toe ook trommelvlies beschadigende blikken geluiden zoals in Feels like I am Dreaming. Het is dan of ze nog eens moeten laten zien dat ze ook nu nog grenzen doorbreken. Nee, dat hoeft echt niet.

Tussen de 13 nieuwkomers zit naast dit album ook het nieuwe werk van The Cure en zelfs van The Rolling Stones. Toegegeven, het eerder toegevoegde album van Leonard Cohen uit 2016 is weer gewipt. Zit er ergens een diepe wens bij de samenstellers om nieuwer werk van bewezen artiesten ook boven water te halen? Of is het gewoon luiheid? Ik ben bang het laatste. Maar op deze manier krijgen we maar weinig mee uit de huidige tijd. Iets waar ik wel een beetje naar uitkeek. Ik laat dat gevoel maar niet het aantal sterren bepalen...

Cool.

modern electronica that I think got added because it reminds the panel of older electronica that's already overrepresented on this thing

Between brat and this it seems that Dimery was in something of a summery party mood when he put these additions in the new edition! Much like brat, For That Beautiful Feeling is a swirling and continuous rave inspired by 00s EDM, though this time by a band that were big players in that scene.

For That Beautiful Feeling is closer to Exit Planet Dust than Dig Your Own Hole. The snappier and hookier songs from the latter aren't present here, instead opting for a non stop mix of electronic beats that culminate in a stop flow to make you feel like it's a party that never ends, again similar to brat. This is a huge step away from big beat compared to their other two albums, with a bigger focus on more methodical house beats, which makes it easy to mentally get lost in the rave atmosphere.

There's one big negative, as much as I praised the flow state of the album above, The Chemical Brothers like to inject harsh noises that completely ruin the flow. It shows up a few times, but the most egregious case is the song Goodbye which almost ruins the album for me. I think the sound they're going for in this song is sorrowful and isolated, but it sounds like drilling a hole in your ear which is the antithesis of exactly what makes the album good. Seriously, I almost docked it a star for this song alone.

Was it a good addition to the list: No, I can safely say this isn't a new or unique take on the band. There's many more electronic album you could add instead.

Top 3 songs: Live Again, No Reason, The Darkness That You Fear - Harvest Mix

Middling electronica that is way past it's prime. 2/5

This list probably didn't need a 3rd chemical bros album. Especially not one from 2023. Cheers Dimmers. And not a single Dimmer album included.