Chromeo Return With Another Funky Hit On "Words With You"

The funky fellows from Chromeo have returned with a new single and lyric video for “Words With You,” which arrives a month before the duo takes the stage for the fifth time at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April. According to both David “Dave 1” Macklovitch and Patrick “P-Thugg” Gemayel, it’s their first official single since the 2018 release of Head Over Heels. But that doesn’t mean the duo hasn’t been feverishly busy in the interim. In truth, they’ve released plenty of music since then: a groovy chronicling of the pandemic with Quarantine Casanova and a collaborative collection of remixes with fellow Montreal artist Anomalie titled Bend the Rules.

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“Words With You” bursts and thrums with all the characteristically funky elements that often fill a Chromeo track. Opening with a jittery synth melody made electric by the presence of an equally excited riff, it eventually adds layer after layer of impossible-to-resist grooves atop one another. From brassy staccato horns and a clanging cowbell to dizzying synthesizer solo flourishes.

Every intrusion of sound is designed to get another part of you moving to the track’s alluring rhythms. As Gemayel hums along Macklovitch murmurs rapidly and intimately into your ear — between shimmering vocal echoes — about a need for more communication. “I just gotta share what’s been on my mind,” he coos. “After all this time, I want you to know.”

“Word With You” also comes with an absorbing lyric video, directed by Daniel Navetta, that sees the duo performing the song side-by-side into each other’s ears. As always, Chromeo relies on making music that not only blesses the limbs with a desire to dance but also fixates on romance in a way that recalls old-school R&B and funk songs. Their latest release might be slightly more subdued than some of their more eccentric and bold soundscapes but it’s still a gleamingly polished jam that serves as a timely reminder of their innate Midas funk-touch.

“For all intents and purposes, this is the first official Chromeo single since our last studio album,” Macklovitch said. “So it’s a statement: a mix of new and familiar. The new: the horn section and live instruments, played throughout, from the drums to the bass to our array of synths. The familiar: the groove and the tone, two signature things that we’ve been honing for almost 20 years now. The idea was to come out with something that felt sophisticated and slick, with just enough swagger and wit to make you smile. It’s a balancing act we put a lot of thought into…with hopes that it never ever shows. So come over and lend an ear…we’d like to have a word with you.”