Product Description Hot Chip front man Alexis Taylor pares everything back to just piano and voice for an intimate record of new songs, reinterpretations of his own writing, and a selection of favourites both well-known and unheard before by other artists. Recorded at Hackney Road Studios by Shuta Shinoda, Piano invites the listener to be privy to a very private recital, with Alexis’ vocal and piano captured live and up-close, preserving each beautiful moment. "I had always wanted to make a loose and to some extent unplanned piano record - partly inspired by an un-made but suggested Alex Chilton solo piano LP that a friend of mine told me about 15 years ago or so. I began one a few years back which then morphed into the second About Group LP - but the idea stayed in the back of my mind all the while. “The idea with this record was to choose songs of my own and others' that were personal to me and to document live performances which were intimate and unadorned. I wanted to reduce everything to the barest elements, record a great piano well and do as little as possible to the recordings eq or effects-wise. The mood created on the record is pretty different from that on other records I have been involved with. It feels like a special place to be able to go to." Piano is a very personal and private record in some respects, but one which looks outward to celebrate lives of friends now passed, as well as love for those closest to us, and music itself.
W**Y
Samey
A pleasant listening experience, but a bit samey and perhaps best enjoyed in a couple of sittings.
M**N
I'm A Bit Disappointed
Alexis Taylor here gives us his latest album, a very stripped back affair with just his voice and playing the piano. As such on some of these songs it works really well, but others just seem to lack drive. With various inspirations the tracks on these are new ones, older ones which we have heard from Alexis before, and some cover versions.Alexis’ vocals at times make you think that you are listening to a woman on this. This is one of those albums that actually becomes very boring quite quickly if you listen to it in one sitting. This starts off as cathartic, but by the time you are halfway through this just starts to feel rather draining and boring.No doubt this album will bring different responses from many but to me especially when you hear some of the cover versions, it lacks oomph and everything here has been slowed down to a snail’s pace, taking away some of the dynamics from the songs. This becomes quite funereal and it is a shame that some of these tracks weren’t played at a slightly faster tempo to give them a bit more dimension.
M**H
Poor quality vinyl
I tried three copies of this album and they were all clicky - particularly on the last track on either side 1 or 2. A calmer album like this required a better pressing.
Trustpilot
1 month ago
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