Hot Chip

With their second album, Hot Chip graduate from the bedroom to the recording studio and keep grinning the whole way. Even with denser production, the London electro-hop outfit retains a cuddly, lo-fi intimacy, thanks especially to Joe Goddard's straight-faced vocal nonchalance. Not quite singing, not quite rapping, Goddard bubbles and funks underneath Alexis Taylor's laddish falsetto, while the rest of the band adds layers of squiggly synths, nano-sized breakbeats and assorted Casiotone confetti. But don't be fooled -- Hot Chip's levity belies the depth and stickiness of their music.