Chromeo – Adult Contemporary

Though they came up alongside the aughts indie-dance movement, Chromeo have long hewed more directly to the club, albeit with a wry & sly edge. But it’s been two decades since they debuted, and we’re all getting older, so the band leans into that on Adult Contemporary.

Instead of Dave 1’s usual come-on lyrics (that haven’t always aged well these days), Adult is about romance as an adult, even middle-aged – but still very much with P-Thugg’s disco-funk synths. Tracks such as “Got It Good” and “Friendsnlovers” are more interesting Chromeo takes on relationships and their pitfalls, while Dave 1 admits that tiring “late-stage capitalism” (not a term you’d ever thought that you’d hear from Chromeo) can sometimes mean that rest is “BTS” – better than sex (something else that you’d never thought you’d hear from Chromeo). There are some more straightforward numbers (“Replacements” is lifted by a guest appearance from La Roux – there are fewer guest spots on Adult than most Chromeo records), and still a few funny ones, like the wry “Personal Effects” and “CODA”.

While Chromeo can still rock a club, they’ve come to admit that they might be too old to go to them, and have thankfully evolved their lyrics while staying true to their sound on Adult Contemporary.