Manu Shrine - Wave Form

Manu Shrine, from Russia, joins the growing ranks of mysterious

musicians, pumping out dopeness from beyond our fingertips,

somewhere between the shadows.

His sound is definitely, post-dubstep by way of chillout -

 a softly pulsing bassline, echoing pianos and the skittering

percussion oft associated with post-dubstep. What enhances

the intimacy he creates here is how he has the male and female 

vocal samples play off each other as if they are trapped in a

duet within a ghostly realm.

It's melancholia made beautiful, longing made bearable.

Usher - Climax (Lindsay Lowend Remix)

Usher and Diplo had a scorcher on their hands about a year ago with

their collaboration on 'Climax.' Undoubtedly, between then and now,

several hands have touched it with intent to remix but few this funky.

Lindsay Lowend spins it around with chunky bass, a steady ambient pad

then goes into a bridge with swirling synths and electronic horns. It ends

on a more sedate... climax with Usher's vocals layered

upon each other.

Effective nonetheless.

Droop-E (feat. Nite Jewel and J. Stalin) - N The Traffic [Video]

Droop-E has been quietly killing the beatmaker game. On the low, he's
contributed several gems to E-40's (his dad) past few releases and also
put out a mixtape of his own where he flipped all Sade samples.

In anticipation of his upcoming EP Hungry and Humble, he has joined forces with

fellow Bay Area brethren J. Stalin and bedroom dream pop siren Nite Jewel. 

Its encouraging seeing rappers continue this new trend of collaborating with

non R&B/less conventional singers. Big Boi got up with Phantogram and

Little Dragon, Danny Brown is going to be heard soon with Purity Ring.

Nite Jewel turns up with a smooth hook that complements the beat which 

is a laid back knocker with UFO synth squiggles, naughty xylophones,

heavily reverbed chord stabs and a Jeep-ready bassline.

The video is slick, depicting a 1930s Bay Area scene, drenched in hazy

light, cigar smoke and muted colors. Everything is old school swank, 

everyone moves in slow motion.

Of course, E-40 shows up.

Purity Ring - Grammy (Soulja Boy Cover)

In 2012, Purity Ring made a big splash in the indie pop circle, signing to 4AD

and dropping their well received gem of a debut album. Well, its a new year and 

Purity Ring has not left us without some dope shit to step to. 

See sweet baby Jesus still loves ya!

But a Soulja Boy cover? Well trust that Megan James' maple syrup coated
throat would come with a nimble flow and a catchy melody to
obliterate Corin Roddick's twinkling beat. 

It's awesome but twice as awesome because its a Soulja Boy cover.

Karmin could learn a thing or two from these guys.

Prodigy & Alchemist - Give Em Hell

Since Return of The Mac, Prodigy has not released anything with comparable
impact. Tides might be changing now that  he is linking back up with Alchemist
for the forthcoming 'Albert Einstein' out early 2013

Prodigy is in fine form here on the lyrical tip and the beat Alchemist lays
beneath him is smooth as baby balls, oozing squiggly synths, rhodes keys and
fluttering chopped vocals.

Kitty Pryde - R.R.E.A.M.

Kitty Pryde is back! Once again, she combines her teeny coy lyrics with her

whispery delivery. It seems like age is giving her a bit of an edge but she's

still got her self-deprecating sense of humor that makes her so cute and endearing

On her last release, she collaborated with producer GRANT to churn out 

'Give Me Scabies' - her absurdly dope take on Carly Rae Jepsen's 'Call Me Maybe.'

Here, they team up again to flip Wu-Tang Clan's 'C.R.E.A.M.' on its head.

It's off her upcoming EP 'D.A.I.S.Y. Rage' which should be dropping this

January 31st on her Tumblr.

Redheads with freckles go hard!

Ulrich Schnauss - A Ritual In Time and Death (Video)

Ulrich Schnauss is known for his shoegazy ambient electronica which always
sounds like he is doing an ethereal Blade Runner soundtrack. In other words,
he concocts detailed progressive soundscapes, great as background music and
interesting enough if you were to play closer attention.

This joint off the upcoming A Long Way To Fall out via Domino (2/12/13) is
exactly what you would expect from him - heavily reverbed guitars, bubbling
synth arpeggios, futuristic strings and delicate percussion.

Check out the video below. Listen and be transported into another world.

You might run into a replicant.