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I think it'd be safe to call this double-disc set "the definitive Baron Zen release." Not only does it include all the new of remixes from the Stones Throw elite (Madlib, J.Roc, et al.) but the second CD contains the full At...
expand review The Mall album released last year (but recorded from 1988-92 with drum programming from PBW himself). The insanely lo-fi Baron (aka Sweet Steve) gets completely overhauled on the remix disc. Our man Blu Jemz' remix of "Walked In Line(1)" is minimal and menacing, with just enough guitar shreaddage thrown in to keep things moving. James Pants turns in a bumping mix of "Gotta Get Ridda Rick(2)," Arabian Prince murders on the dark electro "Money(3)" and J.Rocc works some weird synthy magic on the already bizarre Debbie Deb cover, "When I Hear Music(4)." It wouldn't be a Stones Throw project without Mr. 'Lib, who remixes the early sneakerhead anthem "Shoes(5)." Even the names you might not know come through on this one - check out dam-funk's remix of "Burn Rubber(6)," all Zapp'ed out. Booklet has tons of pics and liners from PB Wolf, including a breakdown of how each remix came about. (Choice quote: "Sure, I'll do it, but I want an uptempo track. 150 BPM's is my shit right now." - Jemz) 29 tracks total. -Larri Byrd
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Three new tracks, six remixes and a "classic" single for under $8? That's some bang for your fading yankee dollar from three of my four favorite Brazilians. (Right now #4 is a tie between Anderson Silva and Adriana Lima.) "Marina Gasolina(1)" is...
expand review nothing new to Lab heads, but the remixes from Peaches(2) and Fake Blood should be. Besides that's just the appetizer, the real goods here are new tracks like "Miami Beach(3)" (hilarious... it's in English!), "Contaminada" and the bumping, minimal "Cagado(4)." There's also a pair of remixes each for their two previous singles - my picks are CSS' mix of "Office Boy(5)" and the Bitchee Bitchee Ya Ya Ya version of "Solta O Frango(6)." 10 tracks; 37 minutes.
-Larri Byrd
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LAB EXCLUSIVO! While supplies last, all orders will receive a promo-only 7" of BDR's new single, "Office Boy," featuring remixes from CSS and Architecture In Helsinki! The vinyl version of With Lasers will be released in a few weeks.
To say that Bonde...
expand review Do Role's debut has been "long-awaited" would be a huge understatement. It's been 2 years since we dropped their first EP on Mad Decent and the kids are all grown up now, migrated over to Domino and swapped out message board love for NME praise. The band probably recorded 40 demos for this album, but the final product is a streamlined beast with just 12 tracks, clocking in at 30 minutes. Really, when's the last time you heard an album where every track could be a single? The Diplo-produced "Solta O Frango(1)" and "Gasolina(2)" are here, and so's the new single, "Office Boy(3)" (stupid fun - "buh-buh-buh-buh-buh-boy"). But what you know about "Quero Te Amar(4)," with the heavy vocoder action and throwback Miami bass beat from the Lab's own Eggfooyoung? Or the evil metal opener/closer combo, "Danca do Zumbi(5)" and "Bondallica(6)," with Chernobyl from Comunidade Nin-Jitsu SHREDDING on those finger-tapping guitar solos? London production duo Radioclit even turn in a couple tracks: the kazoo-driven "Geremia(7)" and chopped-up electro-baile "Divine Gosa(8)." All this is to say nothing of the amazingly fun vocals that Marina, Pedro and Gorky provide. I read an article this morning comparing them to Brazil's Tropicalia artists of the 60s/70s, and while I don't know if that's totally on point (Marina would Manic Panic her hair before she put flowers in it), there's something important going on behind all this silliness. Do I even have to say... Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
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The Chromatics are on fire lately and are popping up everywhere I look - DJ Dixon's Body Language mix, the After Dark CD, and the Italians Do It Better 12's, etc...I see what's going on. Ruth Radelet is actually a...
expand review powerful mage and we're all quickly falling under her spell. If those releases weren't powerful enough, they go ahead and give us the NIGHT DRIVE SOUNDTRACK! Whether this is a real soundtrack to a movie is unclear, and frankly, I don't give a damn. Sure it would be awesome to see the beautiful Ruth Radelet starring in a film, but I'm just happy to hear more of her music. "Night Drive(1)" is the only track I've seen appear on another comp. That means 9 tracks of all new material! Sweet for you (and me -Ed.). Now you have tons of new music to make-out to. The cover of Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill(2)" is an awesome slow burner especially good for the fireplace, while "Healer(3)" and "Tomorrow Is So Far Away(4)" brings the beat to the heat for that extra bump. The saucy synthwork with Ruth's poetic vocals is magically seductive and will have you demanding multiple listens. And just in case you're not in the mood for words, there's the instrumentals "I Want Your Love(5)" and "Let's Make This A Moment To Remember." Sounds like Smokey Robinson singles? Not quite, but they are smokey for sure. Highly Recommended. -C'mish
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Dave1 and P-Thugg return to the album game after a few years of live shows and mixtapes, and they're sounding fresh as ever, proving why they’re the shiny superheroes of the Vice roster. (These guys have funk laced in their bones like...
expand review Wolvie does adamantium.) Right off the bat, the intro tells you what you're getting into as some sassy females chant "CHRO-ME-OH! OHHH-OH!" like the guards in Wizard of Oz. Then they hit you with the one-two punch of the heavily vocodered "Tenderoni(1)" and "Fancy Footwork(2)," both filled with unfadeable melodies and tons of squiggly synth. Digging deeper, you should check the amazingly retro "Opening Up(3)," "Call Me Up(4)" and "Outta Sight(5)." Did I mention that the album was mixed by Zdar and exec-produced by Tiga? Well it was. Also, the artwork is perfect. Nice and quick, too - at 11 tracks and 40 minutes, it only leaves you wanting more. Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
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Are you ready for some 8-bit? After 3 years of hype building, Crystal Castles' first full-length of punk / electro mayhem is finally upon us. Included are already-faves like "Alice Practice(1)," "Air War(2)," "Crimewave(3)" and "xxzxcuzx me(4)," plus plenty of newies like...
expand review the floating "Magic Spells(5)" and "Reckless(6)." Recommended if you like Atari and/or diminuitive hipster girls yelling through stacks of distortion. 16 tracks total. -Chris Lemon-Red
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After a couple of 10"s and an EP that floated up from his homeland of Australia over the last two years, Cut Copy (Dan Whitford) drops a full-length CD that makes good on some of that advanced warning. Cut Copy isn't the...
expand review abstract impressionist his countrymen (and label-mates) The Avalanches are. He instead blends a specific scope of influences - new wave and mellowed-out dance music, mostly - with windblown, electronic rhythms and vocoder vocals. "Future(1)" resembles a contemporary edit of a Human League song, with its synthesized droplets and wistful romanticizing. "Saturday(2)" and the closing "A Dream(3)," meanwhile, shuffle with more breezy house beats. The difference between Cut Copy's nostalgic dance and that of others' is that that he's not as self-conscious, evidenced on songs like "The Twilight(4)" and "Bright Neon Payphone," which expand his sound to incorporate an indie-pop jones. 11 tracks total. -Jazzbo
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The term "highly anticipated" gets tossed around a lot, but it might actually be an understatement in the case of the new full-length from Cut Copy. This shit is already #1 on the Australian charts... okay, you probably only have to sell...
expand review like 30 copies to top the said chart, but this is a great little record which quite a few people have been salivating for. "Little" isn't the right adjective actually, as Cut Copy (with help from DFA's Tim Goldsworthy on production) step up with some epic future/retro dance sounds - check the new version of "Hearts On Fire(1)," the intense "So Haunted(2)," "Nobody Lost, Nobody Found(3)," album opener "Feel The Love(4)" and the alternately jangly/squelchy disco jam "Lights & Music(5)." Comes with a big fold-out insert designed by Australia's Alter. 15 tracks, 50 minutes. -Chris Lemon-Red
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Back in print! The debut album from Department of Eagles (featuring members of Grizzly Bear), now with 4 bonus tracks - "Dinner For Two(1)" and "Day School/Rooster(2)" - plus exclusive notes and new artwork. Here's what we said when it came out:...
expand review Lots of music flows through the Lab, it's like Rolex perpetual motion. Occasionally, a release comes through that sounds so different (minus your Beans release), it's a mini-office event. That's what happened when we got our first Whitey on the Moon 7". The combination of indy rock lyrics, downtempo beats, musical awareness, and uncanny creativity was a refreshing blast among the vinyl stacks. So much so that we tracked down this NYC based duo to do a single for our Money Studies label. In the meantime, they've released this full length, 12 tracks that come together as one of our favorite listening albums of the year. "Sailing By the Night(3)" is the prime example of the Whitey sound, melodic rock bred with excellent downtempo production. That's an amazing song, but when it's sandwiched between instrumentals like "On Glaze(4)" and "Noam Chomsky(5)," it's not normal. You'll find yourself swaying to the guitar tracks like "Piano In Your Bathtub(6)" and stuttering to experimental beat tracks like "Origin of Love(7)." You realize Whitey has you under control. Back to indy rock? OK, checkout the acoustical "Family Romance(8)" for a nice outtro. For an album so diverse, it really congeals, weaved together by the sheer blast of creativity. Recommended. -the mgmnt
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ESG is one of those awkward moments in time where things just don't seem to fit in neatly. A girl band from the almighty Bri-donx, their sound mixed hip-hop, punk, new wave, and house simultaneously. Their original records on the Factory label...
expand review and the legendary New York label 99 (also home of Liquid Liquid) are truly rare and demand top dollar. This top-notch compilation is the definitive collection of this rare material brought to you by master compilers at Universal Sound. The sound isn't really girly like you'd think, but are hard drum driven tracks. "Moody(1)" blew up as a huge dance classic during it's release and it still rocks the dancefloor. Also included on this compilation is the alternate "Space-Out Version." Then there is track that brought them hip-hop fame is "UFO(2)." Pumped by Bambaataa and the other Union Square DJs, "UFO" found its way onto Ultimate Breaks and Beats, but slowed down to 33rpm. This brought about mass sampling which can be heard on tracks by Beasties, Wu-Tang, PE, and a slew of old-school acts. The rest of their music falls somewhere between these tracks and their punk/new wave roots. It is definitely a unique sound and one that the discerning listener will find pleasurable. Checkout the badass instrumental track "Parking Lot Blues(3)" with heavy bassline and crispy drums (the rolls!). Or the equally heavy "Chistelle(4)" where you hear the influence the drums had on Slick Rick's "Mona Lisa." What about, "Get Funky(5)" with the funk bassline and breaks, but for some reason isn't quite funk? Some may even fall for the catchy, girl vocal, new wave-type tracks like "Come Away" and "Dance." Once you get over the kitsch factor, it becomes infectious. It just doesn't sound like anything else out there. Checkout the pic of Deborah, Renee, Marie, Tito, and Valerie on the back cover and you'll be asking how they do that? Excellent quality compilation with pull-out linear notes. -the mgmnt
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LAB EXCLUSIVO! You'll be hearing the name Fortune a lot in 2008, but for now just start with this: four new tracks from France's latest rock prodigy (DP sez: "Ratatat and Phoenix just had a baby!") plus remixes from fellow countrymen M83...
expand review and Tepr, and the Lab's own Snack & C'mish. "Bully(1)" is my pick for best track, a stompy mod rocker with just a twist of pop and e** that only gets better on Snack & C'mish's sick funk / boogie / electro remix(2). M83's dense shoegaze style is in full effect, though they get a little dancier than I've ever heard them on their remix of "Mission(3)." Tepr's mix of "Shadow(4)" should satisfy the house and techo lovers, but for more rock skip to the original mixes of "Target(5)" or "Mission." 7 tracks total. Recommended. -Larri Byrd
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Italians Do It Better are killing it right now with the releases, and this one is no exception. "Beatbox" features 9 icy smooth disco-pop tracks from the power duo of Glass Candy (Johnny Jewel is on production duty lacing the retro-future synth...
expand review driven beats up proper while Ida No serves up the sexy smooth vox like no other). If you liked their stuff on "After Dark" or picked up the Miss Broadway 12" you pretty much need to get this one too. Checkout their fantastic cover of the Kraftwerk classic "Computer Love(1), sweet and funky soul on "Rolling Down Hills(2)," modern italo action on "Digital Versicolor(3)," and the future-pop gems "Etheric Device(4)" and "Beatific(5)." Excellente! Recommended for sure. -snackmaster
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CD reissue of the very first LP on Sun City Girls' Sublime Frequencies label. Some truly original guitar-based business going on here. The label say: "If you think you've heard all the great electric guitar styles in the world, think again. This...
expand review Saharan sand-blizzard of fine-crushed glass will grind your face to a bloody pulp. Group Doueh play raw and unfiltered Saharawi music from the former colonial Spanish outpost of the Western Sahara. Doueh (pronounced "Doo-way") is their leader and a master of the electric guitar. His sound is distorted, loud and unhinged with an impressive display of virtuosity and style only known in this part of the world. His wife Halima and friend Bashiri are the two vocalists in the group. Sahrawi songs are from the sung poetry of the Hassania language. The music is based on the same modal structure as Mauritanian music, however, Doueh's style is a looser appropriation infused with a Western guitar scope, one that relies, in his words, as much on Hendrix as it does traditional Sahrawi music." If you're having a hard time getting your brain around what that all sounds like, just check these: "Cheyla Ya Haiuune(1)," "Wazan Samat(2)," "Tirara(3)," "Fagu(4)," "Sabah Lala(5)." 8-panel booklet included with rare color photos from Doueh's archives. 8 tracks; 40 minutes. -Chris Lemon-Red
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This limited deluxe edition includes a bonus DVD featuring the following live performances: "Shake A Fist (Live at Melt Festival)," "Boy From School (Live at Melt Festival)," "Hold On (Live at Electric Ballroom)," "One Pure Thought (Live From Glastonbury)" and "Over And...
expand review Over (Live From Glastonbury)." An unexpectedly beautiful third album from Hot Chip! I guess they weren't content dominating the dancefloor with stuff like "Shake A Fist(1)" and "Ready For The Floor(2)," 'cause now they're making flawless pop-dance hybrids like "One Pure Thought(3)" (was that a "Macarena" reference?) and "We're Looking For A Lot of Love(4)." (They even get downright emo on the title track.) Of course they still keep it semi-weird with songs like the robotic "Bendable Poseable" and "Touch Too Much(5)," which layers harmonies, percussion and synths until you're completely under the spell. The end of the album sort of tails off a bit for me, but there are about a million remixes begging to be made from this album. For now, I'll say this one's suitable for new and old Hot Chip fans alike. 13 tracks; 54 minutes. -Larri Byrd
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First time on CD! Peter Black's Pylon Records has done obscure minimal new wave fans the world over a solid with this release, which collects up (almost) the entire recorded output of Santa Barbara, CA's Iron Curtain. The band was the brainchild...
expand review of Steve Fields -- who "wanted to meld the melodic angst of The Cure with the electronic funk of Kraftwerk" -- and most of this material was first heard on self-released cassettes and 7"s. Given Mr. Fields' influences, it comes as no surprise that Iron Curtain's music sometimes sounds like a dreary (you know, in the cool 80s sense) Frankenstein's monster made up of bits from Joy Division, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, The Cure and Kraftwerk. These tracks are sometime spooky, sometimes punky, always catchy and instantly infectious. Take a listen: "The Condos(1)," "Tarantula Scream(2)," "Like A Family(3)," "Terror Story(4)," "Shadow(5)." 12 tracks total; 59 minutes. -Chris Lemon-Red
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45:33 was originally commissioned by Nike for iTunes as a "work out" mix, but this shit is so good that the DFA decided to put it out on CD and LP. The "mix" isn't a mix in the traditional DJ sense of...
expand review the word, but rather an epic disco-movement played live by James Murphy and Co. It starts off with a lonely synth line that slowly builds in tempo then eventually grows into a full on groover that erupts into various rhythms and styles eventually climaxing, then breaking down into an ambient drone. You'll recognize some tunes of the Sound Of Silver album for sure (like "Someone Great" and others) but the way it is all presented is fresh and unique. You should see the list of instruments that James Murphy plays on this thing too - everything from vintage drums, guitar, all kinds of synths, vocoder and the glockenspiel. Very, very impressive. The CD version also includes 3 unmixed bonus tracks - "Freak Out/Starry Eyes(1)," "North American Scum - Onanistic Dub(2)," and Hippie Priest Bum-Out(3)" all of which are exclusive to this release. Recommended. -snackmaster
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Music nerds, web log masters, mp3 traders and similar people who will punch each other in the face to "stay up" already know the deal with MSTRKRFT. Basically this started as a side project for one of the guys from Death From...
expand review Above 1979, making remixes for Vice Records label mates like Bloc Party, Annie, Panthers etc... and that slingshot the MSTRKRFT name into the middle of all those front line combatants, who basically ate the shit up with a spoon. Now they've made a full album of original material, with 8 tracks of the 5+ minute variety (hence the double vinyl). A lot of it sounds very Daft Punk with vocoders and "sexy" disco house sounds running through almost every track, but who really gives a shit... its good, makes people dance and is the kind of stuff that people might just maybe take their clothes off to. Nothing wrong with that. Check out "Easy Love(1), Work On You(2), She's Good For Business(3), Bodywork(4)," and "Neon Nights(5)." Not so easy to find this thing either, btw. -the mgmnt
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I'll let you in on a secret: Muscles is the shit, and Guns Babes Lemonade is a late-comer in the running for Best Album of 2007. I've been sweating this dude's one-man band steez and bugging Modular for a copy of this...
expand review album for over a year now; in the meantime, he's been making a name for himself in and outside of his native Australia, touring with Soulwax and remixing folks like Robyn and Architecture In Helsinki. Plain and simple: if you're a fan of dance music (or just fun music) and haven't heard Muscles' insane rave synths, multitracked harmonies and obtuse/sweet lyrics yet, you're doing yourself a disservice. Allow me: "Ice Cream(1)," "Hey Muscles I Love You(2)," "One Inch Badge Pin(3)," "Chocolate Raspberry Lemon & Lime(4)," "The Lake(5)" and "Sweaty(6)," which sports a refrain of "PEACE! LOVE! ECSTASY! UNITY! RESPECT!" Comes in a glossy digipak with embossed cover. 11 tracks; 43 minutes. Highly recommended. -Larri Byrd
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Spoon scooped up some serious remixes for this EP, which features their shuffly, hip-swaying rendition of "Don't You Evah(1)" by the Natural History. Ghostly's Matthew Dear starts his remix(2) gently, looping little guitar fragments as frontman Britt Daniel's vocals ride the beat....
expand review But it builds as it goes, stacking layers of spaceship synths and arcade sirens 'til it lifts off for parts unknown. Diplo's mix(3) takes the minimal approach, utilizing squelching dubsteppy sub-bass, while indie rocker Ted Leo(4) comes with a surprisingly heavy Jamaican style dub. Also includes the original Natural History version of "Don't You Ever," the unreleased Spoon track "All I Got Is Me" and additional remixes by DJ Amaze & Alan Astor and Doc Delay. Sidenote: the Get Up Kids' bass player is in Spoon now? 8 tracks; 35 minutes. -Chris Lemon-Red
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Long-running Sao Paolo duo Tetine (aka Bruno Verner and Eliete Mejorado) link up with Soul Jazz for a debut album - only 10 years in the making! - that's crammed with every manner of new wave, punk, electro and baile funk sounds....
expand review If you snoozed on the single, here's your chance to get the sexcellent baile banger "I Go To The Doctor(1)" featuring funk star Deize Tigrona. It's the catchiest song on the album (and unfortunately the shortest too) but that's where the bonus CSS remix(2) comes in handy, with Cansei drummer/covert musical genius Adriano Cintra killing on the production end. There's more funk on "Melo Do Carrao(3)," hushed vox from Eliete on the sinister "Russian Roulette(4)," synth-pop on "Let The X Be X(5)" and the squiggly, almost spoken word single "A Historia Da Garca(6)." 15 tracks; 69 minutes. -Chris Lemon-Red
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US version of this highly touted Bath five-piece's debut, featuring the bonus track "Our Special Place." If you like your soul served with dirty beats, distorted vocals and big blazing guitars, this is one for you. "Coleen(1)" is a good representation of...
expand review what The Heavy is about, cluttered up with a nice falsetto, stomping beats and a horn sample that sounds like something out of Premo's bag. But they also nail the bedroom downtempo folk thing on "Doing Fine(2)," unleash buzzing fuzz guitars and feedback with "That Kind of Man(3)" and get tender on the skittering closer "Who Needs The Sunshine?(4)." Also check "Girl(5)," which is what one might imagine a meeting between Joe Jackson and the Streets to sound like. Packaged in a cardboard digipak with full lyrics. 10 tracks, 34 minutes. -Chris Lemon-Red
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The After Dark CDR was originally only available on Glass Candy's '07 west coast tour (only 100 pressed!). Due to popular demand (and the fact that this shit is REALLY REALLY good), the guys over at Italian's Do It Better repressed the...
expand review joint and now you too can have a piece of this modern disco hotness. This isn't a mixtape either (though it kinda looks like one) - it actually contains full unreleased tracks and demo versions from soon-to-be-huge new disco/new italo artists Glass Candy, Mirage, Chromatics, Farah, and Professor Genius. Just check some of these sounds: The sweet and soulful disco grooves of Glass Candy with "Rolling Down The Hills(1)," their take on the Kraftwerk classic "Computer Love(2)," and Belle Epoque's "Miss Broadway(3)," the bittersweet italo vibes of the Chromatics with "Hands In The Dark(4)" and "In The City(5)," and Mirage's spaced-out italo vocoder action on "Lady Operator(6)" and "Lake Of Dreams(7)," and the avant slow motion disco sickness that is Farah's "Dancing Girls(8)." 14 tracks total, no throw aways. Do not miss this if you are a fan of the disco-italo sound (you'll regret it - trust me). Recommended. -snackmaster
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Another great comp from British digger / Slint opening act, Cherrystones, who still refuses to adhere to any specific genre or time period when selecting these things. (The tunes range from the 60s to the 80s with bands from all around the...
expand review globe.) For just a taste of the rare digs contained here, check: the electrifying guitar on Brainbox's "Amsterdam(1)," George Brigman's anachronistic "Blowin' Smoke(2)," Nosferatu's sick French rock styles on "Highway(3)," Midnight Circus' psyched-out "Get It(4)," Episode Six (an early incarnation of Deep Purple) with "Jak D'or(5)" and the outstanding, Wolf Eyes-approved closer, "Warinobaril(6)." 15 tracks; 52 minutes. Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
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