Longtime OMie Andy Caldwell came up through beloved Bay Area electronic ensemble Soulstice to become an überproducer for Naked Music, Yoshitoshi, and his own Uno imprint, scoring a large danceteria hit with Kaskade’s “Everything.” Now he doles out heaping helpings of house with his debut artist album, and its potential monster single “Don‘t You Love Me.” Pals appear, like fellow Soulstice singer Gina René, Afro-Mystik/Blackalicious alum Omega, Naked Music’s Lisa Shaw and Amma, and Ultra’s Latrice Barnett. Hooky basslines, sentient drum patterns, Caldwell’s own live instrumentation, and smoove vocals butter up the eardrums, resulting in some of the yummiest S.F. house around.
Various Artist Defected In The House: Miami 06
London’s Defected Records revisits steamy Miami with this monster triple-threat of delicious, WMC-tested soulful boogie. Mixed by label founder Simon Dunmore, each of the three thematic discs sparkles with top cats and kitties in deep dance: “Sunset” warms the eve with funky electro-disco; “Sundown” brings on sunny saxophones, house pianos from heaven, and yummy acapellas; and “Sunrise” returns to the discotheque, ’80s-style. Need names? Reel People, Blaze, Playgroup, The MuthaFunkaz, Faze Action, Afromento, Byron Stingily, P-Funkateers, Anthony Acid, Roy Ayers… For when you care enough to play the very best.
Tied & Tickled Trio A.R.C.
Tied & Tickled Trio is the side project of Markus and Micha Acher, notably members of The Notwist, 13+God, and Lali Puna. Their other projects found them dabbling in definitive electro-pop, but T&TT is committed to organic jazz. Mainly a DVD for the captivating concert film Observing Systems, the release also includes a CD with the unreleased track “A.R.C.” The composition washes in and out of melodious horns and electronic swells-a 20-minute dissection of the group’s radiant dynamics. Packed with extras like music videos and European TV interviews, A.R.C. comes highly recommended for those enamored by the work of the Acher brothers.”
Various Artist Sur La Mer Samp-Le-Mer
If Load Records is the Sub Pop of noise, then 5 Rue Christine must be its Dischord. In its nine years as a record label, 5RC has demonstrated a sincere commitment to its varied roster regardless of sales or appeal. The result of this loyalty has produced some incredible releases from the likes of Deerhoof, Xiu Xiu, Hella, and The Mae Shi. Sur La Mer Samp-Le-Mer, the label’s first compilation, offers 17 tracks (10 of which are previously unreleased) to celebrate their history. Ranging from the abnormal (“The Punks’ We Are the Shit, Pt. 2”) to the soothing (Amps For Christ’s “Old Shepard”), the collection is an aural collage that rarely loses steam. Fans of the label-and its parent, Kill Rock Stars-will gush over the rare jams, while newcomers will revel in the label’s many facets, making Sur La Mer Samp-Le-Mer required listening for any fan of out-there audio.
Think About Life Think About Life
After giving us a slew of accessible rock acts, all eyes are on Montreal for the next great hype. Think About Life certainly has the hooks required for world domination, but they drench them in dirty Casios and lo-fi beats. From the muffled melodies of “Paul Cries” to the dancey introspection on “Serious Chords,” Think About Life’s debut record has more in common with noise bands then their Bowie-approved contemporaries. Topped off by some guest verses from Subtitle and stunning artwork from Jack Dylan, the self-titled record is a messy and cerebral masterpiece that will probably never blow up.
Various Artist Ben Watt: Buzzin’ Fly Volume III
The third volume in Ben Watt’s mix series threads together label highlights with a carefully deployed selection of non-Buzzin’ Fly tracks (from imprints such as Border Community, Out of Orbit, and I Love Deep) to create a deep house ‘n’ minimal mix that is beautifully paced and rarely less than lovely. Utilizing the likes of Fairmont‘s “Gazebo,” Kayo‘s “Clear Sky,” and Darkmountaingroup‘s spectacularly good “Lose Control,” as well as Watt’s own collaborations with Baby Blak, Volume III combines melancholy with a hands-in-the-air style euphoria; navel-gazing with the impulse to get out of it on the dancefloor. Sublime.
Daedelus Denies the Day‘s Demise
He’s done it again. Santa Monica’s Daedelus unveils a kaleidoscopic puree of eclectic grooves drawing on bossa nova, found sounds, and Cary Grant-era soundtracks, precision-crafted with a delicious IDM flair. Sophisticated and exhilarating, this rich 14-track masterpiece meanders with jazzy, urban zeal through a surreal landscape grounded in the street-wise beat programming we‘ve come to expect from the Mush camp. The sample selection is impeccable, and the fusion seamless, evoking dream-state imagery while keeping the heads nodding. Crafted the way an album should be, Denies is more than just the sum of its delightful little parts. Highly recommended.
Various Artist Perlon Allstars: Superlongevity Vol. 4
Staying true to their minimal aesthetic for nearly a decade now, Perlon has become quite the trusted brand, and they once again bring all the perennial Perlonites together for the fourth installment of the Superlongevity series. Label chiefs Sammy Dee and Zip, along with Matt John, Baby Ford, and Ricardo Villalobos, keep the twisted minimal pendulum swaying while Stephan Goldmann and Dandy Jack sprinkle some robotic funk into the selection. The label’s proclivity for odd, surgical vocal manipulations percolates through tracks like Dimbiman’s “First Laki” and Markus Nikolai’s “Wheelsucker.” Narcotic Syntax pulls out all the vocal stops with “Raptors Delight,” which, even without the ornithophobic lyrics, is one helluva snazzy electro-funk number that nicely rounds out the reduced glitchery of the album. And leave it to Montreal sweetheart Marc Leclair (a.k.a. Horror Inc., Akufen) to cap the compilation perfectly with the exotic strings of “The Absent.” Super indeed.
Various Artist Elektronische Musik: Interkontinental 5
Traum shakes up the format a bit with their latest comp, delivering a solid mixed release rather than their traditional track-by-track presentation. Riley “Triple R” Reinhold showcases the label’s current output with a punchy blend spanning from dirty, bass-granulated numbers from Lars Wickinger and Mashkraft to the shuffling tech-house stylings of Jesse Somfay to an ambient outro by sheer bloody genius Nathan Fake. But make no mistake-the meat of this 14-track sandwich is pure electronic 4/4 poundage, during which even Primate’s Ortin Cam comes out to play. Out with the chin stroking, in with the pump. Me likey.
Lord Jamar The 5% Album
You may recognize him from Oz or The Sopranos, but Lord Jamar’s main gig is dropping beats and rhymes for Brand Nubian. On this solo debut, Jamar uses clever samples (Chicago’s “25 or 6 to 4” sparks a Dead Prez-sounding “Revolution”) and detailed storytelling (“The Corner, The Streets” with Grand Puba) to delve into the philosophy of the Islamic-oriented Five Percent movement, whose tenets include the idea that each man is his own God. The Nation of Gods and Earths (the Five Percent Nation‘s official name) believe the enlightened few (5% of the population) must use their knowledge to liberate the masses. Throughout, Jamar translates this faith into intelligent rhymes designed to wake up a gun-fixated hip-hop nation.
