Need You Now is the second official single of Hot Chip's sixth studio album Why Make Sense. The song uses samples from the song I need you now by Sinnamon.
Official Music Video
- Song release date: 1 April 2015
- From album: Why Make Sense?
- Music Genre: Deep House
- Label: Domino Records
- Video Director: Shynola
- Producer of the video: Jacob Hyam-Swan
- Video producer company: Back Dog Films
What music magazines and the label wrote about 'Need You Now'
Domino Records
"A disco ballad for the modern world, it samples Sinnamon's "I Need You Now", occasionally injecting hope into a dark song that appears to be bereft of hope."[1]
Under the Radar
"The song features a driving beat and a soul diva crooning the chorus from the living room television."[2]
The Guardian
"The song appears on the band's sixth album Why Make Sense? and teams world-weary, pensive lyrics and a house beat with R&B trio Sinnamon's vocal hook from 1983 track I Need You Now."[3]
Stereogum
"In the Shynola-directed clip, frontman Alexis Taylor plays a man caught in a bizarre time-loop, chasing different versions of himself across a rainy English landscape."[4]
The Independent
"Shot in Hastings and near Derek Jarman’s garden in Dungeness, footage stars Taylor as a man caught in some kind of bizarre Eternal Sunshine trip, encapsulating an all-too-familiar sense of helplessness."[5]
CLASH
"Taken from upcoming album 'Why Make Sense?', the track pits Taylor's melancholic purr against a soulful guest vocal."[6]
BrooklynVegan
"Hot Chip’s new single from their forthcoming sixth album, Why Make Sense, is “Need You Now” which is a very solid house number with a hook sampled from the 1983 Sinnaman single “I Need You Now.”"[7]
Pitchfork
"(...) this song is about needing someone you can trust, someone who cares, because everything else around you is falling apart."[8]
Mixmag
"Goddard, of course, is 50 per cent of The 2 Bears, and while 'Why Make Sense?' only harbours one out-and-out dancefloor track – the spitting, organ-soaked 90s house of 'Need You Now' – there are plenty of 'moments' elsewhere."[9]
Far Out Magazine
Shynola, the video's directing team, said of the intent behind the video shoot for Need You Now:
"(...) What was intended to be a piece of thrifty filmmaking ended up being a mind-melting shoot – if you can imagine shooting multiple versions of reality, but completely out of chronology, plus in the pissing rain and wind.”"[10]
Exclaim!
"A breakup story takes a surreal twist for Hot Chip leader Alexis Taylor in the new video for the UK group's "Need You Now.""[11]
Entertainment Weekly
Eric Renner Brown of Entertainment Weekly wrote about the track:
"This is how house music should sound. The nocturnal beat and drifting vocals coalesce for a track that should electrify hip dancefloors across the country this summer."[12]
DIY Magazine
"For all the heavy self-discovery that threatens to weigh down ‘Need You Now’, Hot Chip have masterfully kept every moment light."[13]
Consequence of Sound
"Now, they’ve shared the fresh album track “Need You Now”, accompanied by its time-bending video."[14]
Beat Magazine (Australia)
"There are moments in Need You Now where I think it may work better as an instrumental, the production nearly on par with Caribou’s excellent Our Love."[15]
References
[1] Domino Records. (n.d.). Hot Chip - Need You Now (12" White Label) | Domino Mart - Domino. https://www.dominomusic.com/releases/hot-chip/need-you-now/12-white-label
[2] Flynn, T. (2015, April 1). https://www.undertheradarmag.com/news/watch_hot_chip_-_need_you_now_video
[3] Silverstone, T. (2015, May 19). Hot Chip perform Need You Now live in session – video. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/music/video/2015/may/19/hot-chip-need-you-now-live-session-video
[4] Breihan, T. (2015, April 1). Hot chip – “Need you now” video. Stereogum. https://www.stereogum.com/1791459/hot-chip-need-you-now-video/news/
[5] O’Connor, R. (2015, May 12). Hot Chip’s Joe Goddard, interview: “Computers can squeeze the humanity out of music” | The Independent. The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/hot-chip-s-joe-goddard-interview-computers-can-squeeze-the-humanity-out-of-music-10244728.html
[6] Murray, R. (2015, April 2). Hot chip – ‘Need you now’ Clash Magazine Music News, Reviews & Interviews. https://www.clashmusic.com/music-videos/hot-chip-need-you-now/
[7] BrooklynVegan Staff. (2015, Arpil 1). Hot Chip share “Need You Now” video from new LP. BrooklynVegan. https://www.brooklynvegan.com/hot-chip-share-1/
[8] Fallon, P. (2015, April 7). Hot chip: “Need you now.” Pitchfork. https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/17419-hot-chip-need-you-now/
[9] Worthy, S. (2015, April 8). Hot Chip - 'Why Make Sense?' (Domino) - Reviews - Mixmag. https://mixmag.net/read/hot-chip-reviews
[10] Whatley, J. (2015, April 2). Hot Chip Release “Need You Now” Video Directed By Shynola. Far Out Magazine. https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/hot-chip-release-need-you-now-video-directed-by-shynola/
[11] Hudson, A. (2015, April 1). Hot Chip "Need You Now" (video) | Exclaim!. https://exclaim.ca/music/article/hot_chip-need_you_now_video
[12] Robinson, W., & Brown, E. R. (2015, April 10). Music we loved this week: Tyler, the Creator and A$AP Rocky return, plus another Hot Chip dance gem. EW.com. https://ew.com/article/2015/04/10/music-we-loved-this-week-tyler-creator-and-aap-rocky-return-plus-another-hot-chip/
[13] DIY Staff. (2015, April 2). Hot Chip - Need You Now review • DIY Magazine. https://diymag.com/review/hot-chip-need-you-now
[14] Kaye, B. (2015, April 1). Hot Chip premieres new song "Need You Now" and video -- watch. Consequence. https://consequence.net/2015/04/hot-chip-premiere-new-song-need-you-now-and-video-watch/
[15] Beat Magazine Staff. (2015, April 20). Hot Chip : Need you now. Beat Magazine. https://beat.com.au/hot-chip-need-you-now/