After a release like S.T.R.E.E.T. D.A.D. I was a little worried about Out Hud.  That release was just as amazing as everyone said it was, but the hip sounds and styles there may not have been enough to sustain a bands entire career.  If they kept it the same they would have released another similar record to ‘pretty good’ reviews and then everything would be downhill from there.  So I wondered why some people were anxious about the new record when they heard that it had plenty of female vocal and more of a pop agenda.  I mean, we’re talking about Out Hud—the last thing they would ever do is resort to some cheapo Euro-freestyle dance shit.

The beats on this record are more poppy than the last but that doesn’t make them bounce any less.  Actually, I’m glad a record like this has come along, for people like me who don’t dig straight pop acts like Annie.  If your collection contains LP’s by Two Lone Swordsman, Boards of Canada and other such electronic-but-not-quite-dance acts then you need to hop on board the Out Hud train.  The guitars take a distant second place to the pulsating beats here and this lends the album a heaviness that places it alongside other thick, funky electronic records.  I’m glad they haven’t gone the dance-punk way; Let Us Never Speak of It Again is much more refreshing because of it.

“It’s For You” starts things off with some of the grooviest bass on record, yet it is also the closest to the whole dance-punk genre that the band seems to be leaving behind.  It’s better than “One Life to Leave” and it’s one of the hottest tracks on this disc.  I seem to prefer the songs with the female vocals over the instrumentals, but that’s only personal preference.  “The Song So Good They Named It Thrice” is definitely a highlight—long and hypnotic, it is a reminder of what the band is like sticking to their original heavy formula.  The other track I’d like to mention is “How Long.”  It is the best song on the second half of Let Us Never Speak of It Again and will be on most of the burned CD’s I make for the rest of the year.  It has some of the group’s best vocals and it makes me want to be a good dancer.  Just like New Order, I can’t help but feel sexy listening to this.  Maybe it’s just me.  This record will satisfy indie kids and electro snobs alike.

 - Andrew Iliadis

/may 15th 2005/