Surrender

The Chemical Brothers

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 22, 1999)
• Original Release Date: June 22, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Astralwerks
• ASIN: B00000J8EK
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (235 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #37,160 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  Music > Dance & Electronic > Big Beat

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Surrender kicks off with a nervous, vibrating whine that brings to mind the first three seconds of Hendrix's "Foxy Lady." But it's just a tease; on their third album, techno's Chemical Brothers have all but turned their back on the rock muscle that earned 1997's Dig Your Own Hole gold status in the U.S. Oh, there are guest rock vocalists galore--New Order's Bernard Sumner, Mazzy Star's Hope Sandoval, and Oasis's Noel Gallagher--but only the latter brings out the crunching big beats that the Chems all but invented. The rest of Surrender hews closer to the thinner, synthesized textures of the electro revival that's swept the dance-music world. Much of the time that's just swell. The leadoff track, "Music: Response," is a seamless trip back to 1985, complete with vocoderized singing and Morse-code beeps. And Sumner's "Out of Control" replicates the thrill of hearing the gloomy Joy Division morph into a swell synthpop band. But without the propulsion that their trademark aggression usually provides, the Chems just barely come up with enough ideas to carry the listener all the way through an album, much less rock a dance floor for an hour at a time. --Jeff Salamon

Rolling Stone
The best dance music is about what happens over, under, in the thick of a rhythm--about the tidal dynamics and programmatic tension feeding the pulse. Surrender is rich in both.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of 1999's best, January 23, 2000

By A Customer

What do you do when everyone tries to sound like you? What no one would expect, that's what. The Chemical Brothers' third album "Surrender" recaptures the same vibe they found mining old-school hip hop on the "Loops of Fury" EP, only this time they find it in mid-1908s house. And, midway through the disc, you'll find some of the most adventurous psychedelic electro-pop ever assembled--even a collaboration with Mazzy Star's Hope Sandoval that'll leave you feeling buzzed all day long.

With the Chems forsaking their trademark block-rockin' beats for the traditional 4/4 of the dance floor, it shouldn't come as that much of a surprise to anyone who bought DJs Tom Rowlands and Ed Simon's mix album "Brothers Gonna Work It Out"--this is just the boys going back to their roots here. Only, instead of simple club-ready retreads, they lay down some impressive sonics that simultaneously seem dated and futuristic, familiar yet not too accessible. Even the blatant Beatlemania of "Let Forever Be," with Oasis's Noel Gallagher, is forgivable since it's such a wonderful reminder of what these three did when they attacked us with that trippy ditty "Setting Sun" two years ago.

The Chems fancy themselves as album-making artists, not merely single-pressing DJs. At the expense of underground credibility, what the Chems have done here is bold and enticing. Track after track unfolds almost delicately, without the industrial onslaught of "Exit Planet Dust" or the heavy funk of the gold-selling "Dig Your Own Hole." The bottom line is, any Chem album is going to be bliss, but this time they've created something that absolutely commands repeated listenings to fully appreciate--that's not a chore, but a gift that keeps on giving.

Alas, one small complaint: "Out of Control," a collab with New Order's Bernard Sumner, is the only cut that's out of place here--it sounds a lot like one of New Order's weaker cuts, "Fine Time." Since this session was released as a single anyway, it would've been a wiser marketing and arranging move to keep it off the album--since it's lumped in with other, more mature-sounding tracks, the song just comes off as dull. Still, a small price to pay for such otherwise crafty and creative, pop-based musicmaking.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Kudos to the Chemical Brothers, January 26, 2000

By	Little Moonboot (Mars) - See all my reviews

I think it's too bad that customers buy a new album, like Surrender, and expect it to be another Dig Your Own Hole, and trash it if it's not. I take my hat off to the boys for trying something new rather than stay with the same old Block Rockin' Beats routine. I enjoy "Hey Boy" because it seems more sarcastic than egotistical (their references to 'superstar DJs' and the cheerful 'here we go!'.. sounds like they are making fun of the hype rather than basking in it) I also enjoyed the retro 80s flavor of music:response. My favorite song on this album is Got Glint?... it's a simple song but there's something fresh about it and the 80s flavor about it really appeals to me. Some of the melodies in this album also have a nice eastern ring to it that is subtle but refreshing. Someone who prefers the older chemical brothers might come away dissappointed but if you're willing to listen to something new and different, give this one a try! P.S. See them live if you can. They are wonderful and the concert's what got me into them!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pure Perfection, June 22, 2001

By	T. Wys (CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is one of the most wonderful collections of modern audio I have had the privilege to witness. From beginning to end, this masterpiece is without a doubt, hands down, the electronic album for the ages. #1 on my all-time album list, this would be the one to take if you were to be stranded on a desert island for the rest of your life with a CD player and a lifetime supply of double A's. It's hard not to find a track here you won't be addicted to. Every melody and every beat is molded and cut from (what can only be hailed as) a miracle of sound. Whatever the Chemical Brothers did to compose this piece of art, I pray, they can replicate in the future. This is a mandatory must-have for anyone into the techno-dance scene -- and even if you're not, please, please, please take a chance and listen to this one...I can't imagine how you could possibly be disappointed. There certainly aren't enough praiseful adjectives to describe this work. I know God must have it next to his stereo in the sky.