The Chemical Brothers have been relatively silent since dropping their apocalyptic dance album No Geography in 2019, but that’s about to change. The legendary electronic duo — comprised of Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons — have just returned today with “The Darkness That You Fear”, their first new single in two years. Stream it below.
“The Darkness That You Fear” is equal parts retro dance music and disco-styled vocal coos. It blends the moodiness of alternative club hits with deep-cut ’80s pop in a way that feels more mysterious than anything else, and potentially signals a new direction for The Chemical Brothers moving forward. If you squint, it almost sounds like Hot Chip covering Chromatics.
Accompanying the track is a vibrant music video that’s styled like a collage. In it, various human silhouettes (colored over to look like minimalist artwork) dance to the track while they’re projected onto outdoor scenes of people dancing, wide-open fields, and eventually some juxtaposing color pallets-turned-paintings.
A 12-inch version of “The Darkness That You Fear” will be released for Record Store Day on June 12th.
After releasing a massive deluxe reissue of Surrender to celebrate the album’s 20th anniversary and picking up two Grammys behind No Geography, The Chemical Brothers stayed busy during 2020 by launching their own radio station on Sonos Radio. The duo also recorded a new dub mix, which is allegedly the first of many in a series of themed mixes they’re working on.
“The Darkness That You Fear” Artwork:
