HOT CHIP IS ON THE MARK

Hot Chip Do Gigs, DJ Dates, Single, Shrigley Benefit
Two words: Todd Rundgren

What's shakin', Hot Chip? Besides, you know, my ass to your songs? Quite a few things, as it happens, are astir in camp Chip of late, so let's set the ass on simmer, pull up a chair, and brush up on the latest.

First up, Hot Chip's Alexis Taylor joined forces recently with Gang Gang Dance's Brian DeGraw to create what Taylor called a "one-off audio-visual piece" on the HC website. The piece, which marked the first Taylor/DeGraw collaborative effort, premiered at the ICA in London on September 6 as part of the Becks Fusions series, alongside new offerings from Matthew Herbert and others. No word yet whether it will turn up elsewhere (the "one-off" part is less than encouraging), but here's hoping.

Hot Chip as a whole, meanwhile, have a limited edition 12" due this month with "Shake a Fist"-- perhaps you caught it in Forkcast?-- and featuring none other than Todd Rundgren. While a Chip publicist could not confirm whether it's a sample or whether Todd actually worked with Hot Chip, our dads are still thrilled to see the name.

Furthermore, the latest and third Hot Chip album, which may be called Shot Down in Flames or 4 or Made in the Dark or something else entirely, is coming along nicely. The quintet hope to have it out, via DFA/EMI, in February 2008. Fingers crossed!

And remember David Shrigley's Worried Noodles project, where Shrig provided lyrics and tons of your favorite bands, Hot Chip among them, made the music? The two-disc/three-vinyl set isn't out until October 23 (on Tomlab), but folks in London can taste an early portion of Noodles on October 14, as Hot Chip and others perform at Scala. Shrigley himself will be there providing animation, while HC, Max Tundra, Psapp, Simon Bookish, Cibelle, James Chadwick, Munch Munch, Scarlet's Well, and more wiggle their Noodles contributions. It's both a launch party and a benefit for Amnesty International, with all proceeds going to the organization. You really don't want to miss that.

Finally, Hot Chip's Joe Goddard has been out there setting dancefloors ablaze like some kind of party arsonist. Catch one of his upcoming DJ dates, listed for your convenience-- alongside a brief run of Hot Chip South American fest dates-- below.