Following the announcement of their ninth album A Long Way From Kansas, Hot Chip head to Manchester’s Albert Hall
The first single to be shared from the record is ‘Random Violence’, a majestic tribute to Optimo’s Keith McIvor which sets the tone for the album. A passionate socialist, Keith (aka JD Twitch) was a DJ, a curator and one of the country’s most forward-thinking promoters, a man who inspired the power of positivity in the people he worked with and played for — an effect echoed in what Al Doyle calls the song’s “human connection”.
Joe Goddard says:
“Last year in September our old friend and brilliant DJ Keith McIvor of Optimo in Glasgow passed away after a diagnosis of an inoperable brain tumour a few months earlier. He largely inspired the words of the song. He was a passionate music lover and a staunch believer in socialism. Many of the words relate directly to his death and to memories of being in Sub Club in Glasgow where we met 20 years ago.”
