''Chop Chop'' is the sixth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by Irish band

Bell X1 The Bell X-1 (Bell Model 44) is a Rocket-powered aircraft, rocket engine–powered aircraft, designated originally as the XS-1, and was a joint National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics–U.S. Army Air Forces–U.S. Air Force supersonic resea ...

. It was released on 28 June 2013 in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. The album released in the United Kingdom on 1 July 2013 and North America on 2 July 2013.

The album

The album's artwork designed by Alexis Deacon and the album's track listing was revealed on 3 April 2013. The band also revealed a special edition of the album which comes with a

chopping board Chopping may refer to: * Chopping (astronomy), an instrumental technique to remove the background * Chopping (sampling technique), a hip-hop sampling method. * Chopping (violin), rapid tapping with the bow, used in jazz * Chopping the blinds, in po ...

Promo

The band completed a short tour in Ireland and the US in 2012 where some of the new tracks were introduced to fans. The band began promotion for the album in March 2013 with the promo release of 'Starlings Over Brighton Pier'. The band announced a number of live dates in the US and Ireland beginning in New York on 7 June 2013 and additional dates in Ireland in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

and

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

where they performed at Live at the Marquee. On 25 June 2013 the band streamed their new album through

Paste Magazine ''Paste'' is an American monthly music and entertainment digital magazine, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with studios in Atlanta and Manhattan, and owned by Paste Media Group. The magazine began as a website in 1998. It ran as a print publi ...

's website. To celebrate the album's release the band opened up 'Pop-up shops' across the Republic of Ireland. The 'Pop-up Shops' feature sales of the album along with food and each purchase of the album features a voucher where buyers could attend a special acoustic set from the band at each venue. The 'Pop-up Shops' will feature in 10 different locations across the country from June 28 in Dublin and finishing in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

on 11 July. A special album launch takes place on 29 June at the

National Concert Hall The National Concert Hall (NCH) (An Ceoláras Náisiúnta) is a national cultural institution, sometimes described as "the home of music in Ireland". It comprises the actual concert hall operation, which in various chambers hosts over 1,000 ...

, Dublin.

Reception

The album received positive reviews from critics, with many praising the quick, more acoustic, stripped back sound. In a 5 star review,

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

(UK) said "they've created a wholly originally sound -as fresh as a Summer storm." Other significant reviews included

Q Magazine ''Q'' was a British popular music magazine. It was founded in 1986 by broadcast journalists Mark Ellen and David Hepworth, who were presenters of the BBC television music series ''The Old Grey Whistle Test''. ''Q'' was published in print in the ...

who referred to the album as: "a more stately, echo-laden place....hushed and expansive", Magnet: " 4 Stars - a riveting album that finds Bell X1 pushing its established aesthetics in admirably new directions", Mojo: "4 Stars - "oozes zest and focus",

Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

: "4 Stars - "the best album of their career -a superb album this way comes", USA Today:"Strains of Motown wind through this Stunner",

Express Express, The Expresss or EXPRESS may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * ''Express: Aisle to Glory'', a 1998 comedy short film featuring Kal Penn * ''The Express: The Ernie Davis Story'', a 2008 film starring Dennis Quaid * The Expre ...

(UK) "5 Stars - yes, its that good" & Daily Metro: "5 Stars -they push things further than ever." Chop Chop was Bell X1's 3rd album to debut at No.1 in the Irish Charts & 4th album to be nominated for a Meteor Choice Music Prize for album of the year. It debuted at No.1 in the

Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA). The charts were previously compiled on behalf of IRMA by Chart-Track, and have been compiled by t ...

, knocking fellow Irish band

Kodaline Kodaline () are an Irish rock band. Originally known as 21 Demands, the band adopted their current name in 2012 to coincide with the changing of their music. The group comprises Steve Garrigan, Vincent May, Mark Penderson and Jason Boland. Gar ...

from the top spot.

Singles

The first promo single taken off the album was 'Starlings Over Brighton Pier' debuted on 20 March 2013 along with the music video. On 11 May 2013 the band streamed their first commercial single release from the new album 'The End Is Nigh' on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

. On 4 June 2013 the band premièred the video for 'The End Is Nigh' on 4 June 2013. This is the first commercial single release from the album.

Tour

Following the album's release the band toured Europe extensively along with live dates across North America. The band would return to perform in 2014 attending a number of European festivals before touring Australia for the first time in summer 2014. The band toured the US in September 2014. The band's last gig in support of Chop Chop will be in

Sligo Sligo ( ; , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of 20,608 in 2022, it is the county's largest urban centre (constituting 2 ...

in October 2014.

Track listing

References

External links

Bell X1
{{Authority control 2011 albums Albums produced by Roger Bechirian Bell X1 (band) albums 2010s in Irish music