Like crop circles and Stonehenge, Chase & Status’s enduring appeal is one of the planet’s great mysteries. Less melodic than Rudimental, less muscular than Pendulum, they deal in a commercial strain of drum and bass that’s big on build-ups and breakdowns but bereft of originality.
On Tribe, as on their previous three albums, the non-singing duo of Will Kennard and Saul Milton are joined by a conveyor belt of special guests of varying repute. Craig David croons winningly on Reload — a Re-Rewind for Generation Z — while Emeli Sandé over-emotes her way through her lead single Love Me More.
In fairness to C&S, theirs is not a sit-down-and-listen kind of sound. NRG (featuring grime MC Novelist) and Control (featuring punk duo Slaves) are an assault on the senses, almost unlistenable on stereo but incredible, presumably, when experienced in the middle of thousands of pogoing punters.
That’s the kindest thing you could say about Tribe: it’s an album that’s probably better experienced live than in a living room.
