AZEKEL - In The Zone '13

Your whiskey you will do neat but you'd like your R&B

with a twist. Fair enough, how about a Nigerian born

London based velvet voiced crooner? Moist yet?

Good. Say hi to AZEKEL.

Off his just released Circa EP via Generator and THNDR

LGHTNG Recordings, this cut is a slice of spacey soul

led by a subtle guitar riff, intergalactic synths and his

ridiculously smooth vocals.

Miguel, the Weeknd and all 'em better watch out....

Aluna George-Outlines

Fans of Disclosure or any London female vocalist over electronic loungey down-tempo beats will love this.  A painful, joyful, cliche-ful get over the person you were seeing. Let it go.

It's not like a déjà vu 
And it's not an illusion 
But sometimes I feel you through 
All the confusion 

It doesn't always make me feel sad 
But it never really makes me feel glad 
Because all the good times we had could never be back 

Caspian - (Hymn For) The Greatest Generation

Caspian, the instrumental post rock band from MA, fell upon
tough times recently with the passing of their bassist Chris Friedman
on Augusts 25. In the wake of that misfortune, they are prepping
the release of their new EP 'Hymn For The Greatest Generation'
teasing us with this majestic tune by the same name.

Their last album was voted Best Post Rock Album of 2012

by SPIN. Clearly, mourning or not, they have not lost a step,
taking us on a contemplative seven minute journey with
twinkling guitars slathered in reverb and decay, building gently
till they give way to the sweetest of sweeping strings.

Tom Neville & Zen Freeman featuring Aaron Paul - Dance Bitch

Now and then we all indulge in a novelty item, no matter

how frugal you are...or not. But what if that novelty item

was a song? A song that reminded us of the countless

hours we spent tracking the exploits of Walter and Jesse

from AMC's 'Breaking Bad'. Don't we need reminders

even more in the absence of what once was? 

Alright maybe this transcends being a novelty item.

While he was not always responsible or reliable, 

Jesse Pinkman could be counted on to expel the expletive

'bitch' with comforting regularity. Well, Tom Freeman and

Zen Freeman knew he would come through, to yell 

at you, several times over the course of this surprisingly

enjoyable electro-house joint -

"DANCE!..........bitch."

Here's proof that every club night needs a Jesse Pinkman.

LODRO - If Life Was Like A Movie

Just as Daft Punk wowed us this year with their big budget
major studio produced album, other artists are scaling down and
going dirty in the comfort of their modest Brooklyn apartments.

Comprised of Jeremy Cox and Jigmae Hann of Royal Baths
and  Lesley Hann of Friends, LODRO barely have tour plans
or an album in the works. But they are working, unfurling hazy
rocking jams influenced by noir films like
this lurching testament to trenchcoat swagger.

As if we haven't been inundated with enough new genres,
they have blessed us with this slice of 'neo noir punk'.
Skip the femme fatale in the red dress and
check out the rhythm section and that guitar riff.

FKA twigs - Papi Pacify (Video)

FKA twigs made quite a dent in the R&B landscape
last year when she dropped her EP. In four tracks,
this mysterious siren from Britain guided us through
her dark sensual R&B funhouse. Her next release
EP2 will be out 10/19/13 on Young Turks.

This new joint is a storm in slow motion produced
by Arca, fresh off his hand in Kanye West's 'Yeezus.'
With cavernous percussion, globs of reverb
and stately strings, he sets the stage for FKA twigs
to plea for a lover's assurance.

The video, directed by Tom Beard, features her in the arms
 of a burly ambiguously menacing dreaded lover whose
caresses border on sinister.

Better still, there are copious amounts of body glitter.
Let your jaw drop and finally admit....
you like glitter.

Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - Deeper

The pairing of Freddie Gibbs literally sounds like a no-brainer

though somewhat a left-field, unexpected move.

Who woulda thunk the Baby Face Killa, the last Mohican

of pure gangsta rap would ever coast over a blunted groove

from Stones' Throw incognegro Madlib? 

Few could have seen that coming.

Well, they actually got an album due February 4 via Madlib Invazion

titled 'Pinata' (originally titled 'Cocaine Pinata',  *a way sicker title!*).

This single here is our first drag of audio kush.

Madlib, souful as ever, loops a violin (the 

world's smallest) with Gibbs in full storytelling mode,

chronicling his misadventures with a scandalous ho.

It's a gangsta soap opera....i.e. AWESOME.