Chrome Canyon - "Elemental Themes Remixes" 2013
This is a decent and respectable remix album for an album from last year that I truly enjoy a lot. I don't prefer any of these versions to the originals, but none of them screw up the song either. Just different takes and directions for the songs. I particularly like the "Memories Of A Scientist" remixes. Listen to the album here. None of these versions are up anywhere else I can find. My favorites are by Matthewdavid, ATTAR!, and Tomas Barfod.
Nosaj Thing - "Home" 2012
First off, this album sounds great on headphones. I know a lot of people complained about the turn he took his career with this one. Some have even referred to this as a sophomore slump album, because they don't enjoy the direction he went. I think this seems like a natural evolution for him to start going into even more texture based music. People that said this was too dancey of an album kinda mislead me into thinking it was going to be more house oriented or something. It's not. It's just some lush sound scapes to get lost within. Most of these songs are too slow for the club anyways, it was clearly meant for headphones and personal listening/reflection, at least in my eyes. Check out the video for "Eclipse/Blue", "Try" (featuring Toro Y Moi), "Phase III", and "Distance"
Devonwho - "Strangebrew" 2012
Maybe I didn't realize it before, but Devonwho seems highly influenced by Dam-Funk. There's nothing wrong with that. I love this style of syncopated drum loops with awesome synth solos on top of them. Music like this simultaneously relaxes me and motivates me and hypes me up. It's a rare thing to be able to capture such a wide range of moods and emotions and make it all accessible. Check out this crazy video for the title track (seriously beautiful, I want videos exactly like this to be shown behind me when i'm DJing, no joke), and check out the rest of the EP here.
Milo - "Things That Happen At Day/Things That Happen At Night" 2013
I found out about this dude through his association with Busdriver and Nocando and I'm glad I did. His style reminds me a lot of Das Racist, but his lyrics seem slightly more well thought out. So many odd references to weird pop culture things. I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for some new hip hop that is actually fun and maybe like to celebrate their inner nerd. Check out both EP's here or at the links provided here to the bandcamp page.
OM - "Advaitic Songs" 2012
So when Sleep broke up years ago, to my knowledge they pretty much split into 2 bands: OM and High On Fire. High On Fire has obviously enjoyed much more success, due to them sticking with metal as a genre. OM however, has chosen to be more of an ambient sounding band, with some material reminding me heavily of Dead Can Dance. This is still rock music, for the most part, but more as a backdrop than anything. I'm diggin this a lot. Check out the video for "State Of Non-Return", or check out the whole album here.
They Might Be Giants - "Nanobots" 2013
I love that they're still alive and kicking and making good new music. I'm not sure if I like this as much as their last one, "Join Us", but it's up there. I like the short song format, it's good for my ADD. Check out the video for the title track, the video for "You're On Fire", the video for "Icky", the video for "Tesla", and "Replicant".
"Stones Throw x Serato II" 2012
A nice little xmas present from Stones Throw & Serato. (I should probably order one of these before they're all gone). The songs on one side and Serato control tones on the flip sides. A nice little hodgepodge collection of songs that you would expect from them. Here is the page for it at Stones Throw with links to listen to half of the songs too.
Justin Timberlake - "The 20/20 Experience" 2013
This is one of those albums that was too high profile and intriguing for me to not listen to, even though it's not my bag. I must say that i'm a little disappointed that him and Timbaland didn't utilize all the time they take up on the running time of these songs. Some of these songs just keep going on and on, and basically just repeat itself. Maybe the beat drops out for a minute, or they add a guitar solo or something, but really nothing to justify the long running times. The songwriting just isn't there for me. A couple of the songs are adequate enough for what they are, but then there's pitiful stuff like "Strawberry Bubblegum" that sounds like a Gary Glitter-esque pedophile anthem. Check out the video for "Mirrors", the video for "Suit & Tie" (featuring Jay-Z), "Pusher Love Girl", and "Spaceship Coupe".
Moon Wiring Club - "Today Bread, Tomorrow Secrets" 2012
This guy really sticks to his same basic formula for every album, and there's nothing wrong with that. This one I was maybe not enjoying quite as much as a couple of the previous ones, but this is still really cool and strange, "trip-hop" style music with no vocals. Just cool collages of weird samples. Kinda like a modern and more refined Land Of The Loops or something. Check out "Enchanting Deportment", "Body Switcher", "Theaterland Takes Shape", and "A New Face On An Old Friend".
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