Surrender

Why it matters

By 1999 the Chemical Brothers had proven they could bludgeon a dancefloor, and Surrender is where they trade the sledgehammer for something warmer and stranger — a rave record that wants to be a headphone album.

The turn is loudest on "The Sunshine Underground," nine minutes that refuse to detonate, building instead on a slow-blooming Indian-scale drone until the release feels earned rather than triggered. Their guest choices tell the same story: Noel Gallagher rides the tumbling breakbeats of "Let Forever Be" like a man happily lost, and Bernard Sumner's ghostly vocal turns "Out of Control" into a New Order record smuggled into a warehouse set. Even "Hey Boy Hey Girl," the obvious floor-filler, is built on a hook that repeats until it stops sounding like a command and starts sounding like a mantra. The result is a dance album that trusts patience, and it made the case that electronic music could hold a whole mood without ever raising its voice too soon.

Listen

Tracklist

1. 01Music:Response5:20
2. 01Hey Boy Hey Girl (The Secret Psychedelic Mix)5:32
3. 01Flashback5:21
4. 02Under the Influence4:16
5. 02Let Forever Be (The Secret Psychedelic Mix)5:20
6. 02Scale3:45
7. 03Out of Control7:20
8. 03Out of Control (The Secret Psychedelic Mix)21:08
9. 03The Diamond Sky3:39
10. 04Orange Wedge3:07
11. 04Flashback (The Secret Psychedelic Mix)5:30
12. 04Studio K5:50
13. 05Let Forever Be3:56
14. 05Dream On (The Secret Psychedelic Mix)4:22
15. 05Power Move4:11
16. 06The Sunshine Underground8:39
17. 06Enjoyed8:09
18. 07Asleep From Day4:47
19. 07Electronic Battle Weapon 46:07
20. 08Got Glint?5:26
21. 08Out of Control (Sasha Club Mix)11:03
22. 09Hey Boy Hey Girl4:50
23. 09Music:Response (Gentleman Thief Mix)7:36
24. 10Surrender4:30
25. 10Music:Response (Futureshock Main Response)8:22
26. 11Dream On6:47
27. 11Hey Boy Hey Girl (Soulwax Remix)7:14
28. 12Hey Boy Hey Girl (Kink Extended Remix)5:56