Pitchfork

Featuring members of !!!, the Brooklyn electro-punk trio Free Blood throw a warped, murky dance party on "Quick and Painful", from their forthcoming debut 12". Their off-kilter electronic thunk is part Timbaland, part Excepter, and the sweaty, self-aware cries of singers Madeline Davy and John Pugh (the band also includes Dan Gorman of !!!) lead the track into gonzo Crystal Castles territory as various synths and percussion noises pile up. "I'm not making silly claims/ I'm not playing silly games/ I'm not saying silly things... am I?" they sing as the song hits its apex.

Sillier things have been said. London's Hot Chip give "Quick and Painful" this loose, pill-popping remix, grabbing hold of a track suited for humid lofts and dropping it onto the dancefloor-- pristine yet still hedonistic. Free Blood's silly chants of "bass!" turn ghostly here, slimed with twizzling electronics. About halfway through, this briefly turns into something with sweetly cooed male vocals and cinematic synths, almost a Hot Chip song. Then it's back to the racket. "Did I destroy your ears?" Madeline asks at the end of the original.

[from "Quick and Painful" 12"; due 09/24/07 in the UK on ACTH]