Air: Le Voyage dans la Lune (Astralwerks)

Air: "Seven Stars" ft. Victoria Legrand of Beach House

More than a decade since composing the score for Sofia Coppola’s The Virgin Suicides, French electro-pop duo Air returns with Le Voyage dans la Lune, a new album that expands on its original score for the recently restored film of the same name. A 16-minute silent film released in 1902 by French director Georges Méliès, Le Voyage has an antiquated look that belies how groundbreaking the director’s use of color and science-fiction imagery were for their time.

Naturally, given the range of aesthetic and social differences between Méliès’ and Coppola’s films, Air’s latest work diverges from the despondent suburban monotone that the group supplied for The Virgin Suicides. This time, core members Jean-Benoit Dunckel and Nicolas Godin pack a lot of variety into a 31-minute span. (The album runs about twice as long as the film.) Surprisingly, though, the new music contains virtually no indications that its source material was created 110 years ago. In fact, Dunckel and Godin were intent on somehow honoring Méliès’ vision while staying grounded in modern sounds.

Whether or not the new music aligns with Méliès’ early 20th Century reveries about lunar travel, plenty of surprises await the well-traveled Air fan — such as the predominantly live, organic-recording approach and the duo’s new-found enthusiasm for timpani. Dunckel and Godin have spent much of their career gazing back at the dawn of synthesizer music, so it’s only fitting that they would set their sights further back to another future, on an artist who would in his own way anticipate what was to come. (A limited-edition run of the album includes the film.)

- Saby Reyes-Kulkarni

Trailer Trash Tracys: Ester (Double Six / Domino)

Trailer Trash Tracys: "Engelhardt's Arizona"

Written on a solfeggio scale — a seven-note diatonic scale such as “do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti” — this debut from London-based psych-pop quartet Trailer Trash Tracys comes off as ethereal and otherworldly, yet totally accessible.

Ester churns out track after track of slow-burning psychedelia mixed with hook-laden indie pop, though never anchored in either. Instead, the music is a movement, shifting speeds and directions to arrive at some new and unexplored topography. “Engelhardt’s Arizona” has a straightforward arrangement, guided by vocalist Suzanne Aztoria’s trailing, echoing voice, but it’s flanked the entire time by a swirling lead-guitar riff that might’ve arrived from an alien planet.

The album is entrenched in reverb and delay, echoes and effects, but the songs move fluidly, always accompanied by irregular bits. Aztoria’s voice is a guiding light through all the dark, foggy sounds, there to take your hand before you become immersed in the soundscapes.

- Michael Danaher

Psycroptic: The Inherited Repression (Nuclear Blast)

Psycroptic: "Carriers of the Plague"

Formed before the turn of the century by brothers Dave and Joe Haley, technical death-metal outfit Psycroptic has torn up Tasmania for more than a dozen years. The Inherited Repression, its fifth album, is another hearty dose of blasts, grooves, and winding guitar leads, but its differences are more pronounced.

In addition to greater disparity between fast and slow moments, a series of intros, outros, and interludes gives the listener more room to breathe. Throughout the album's duration, Psycroptic is careful not to suffocate you with technical mastery or unending riffs. Instead, Joe's harmonized guitar overdubs — which alternate between wailing, thrashing, and chugging — are broken up by acoustic melodies, industrial sounds, and marching snares. As a result, The Inherited Repression tends to avoid listening fatigue, offering an accessible dose of extreme metal.

- Scott Morrow

DJ Food: The Search Engine (Ninja Tune)

DJ Food: "Percussion Map (Pt. 1)"

Originally begun by Ninja Tune founders Matt Black and Jonathan More (better known as Coldcut), the DJ Food project helped to launch the influential London label with a collection of breakbeats, jazzy samples, and funky cuts. Though it was intended as source material for other DJs (hence "DJ food"), it evolved into a collaborative project with Patrick Carpenter, Strictly Kev, and others, before eventually being led, live and on record, by Kev.

Now, 11 years after the last DJ Food release, Kev is back with some notable friends, including JG Thirlwell (Foetus), Matt Johnson of The The, 2econd Class Citizen, Natural Self, and DK. The layoff, in part, is due to Kev's work as a designer — he works on many Ninja and non-Ninja covers — and the time has made a difference here. Plenty of the old calling cards are still around, but The Search Engine is trippier and heavier, with spacey effects and minor-key motifs.

Most tracks fall in the three- or four-minute wheelhouse, but there's a handful of long-form pieces, including a cover of The The's "Giant" (featuring Johnson, naturally). "A Trick of the Ear" helps to wind down the album with a jazzy, long-form jam that's chock full of vibraphone chords, bongo beats, and verbal samples, but it's preceded by one of the most interesting pieces, the eleven-minute, nine-suite "Magpie Music" collaboration with 2econd Class Citizen. The Search Engine showcases a healthy diversity — not too schizophrenic and not too staid.

- Scott Morrow

Honorable Mentions

Bahamas: Barchords (Universal Republic)

Big Sir: Before Gardens After Gardens (Sargent House)

Dr. Dog: Be the Void (Anti-)

Ben Kweller: Go Fly a Kite (The Noise Company)

Mark Lanegan Band: Blues Funeral (4AD)

Lindstrøm: Six Cups of Rebel (Smalltown Supersound)

Of Montreal: Paralytic Stalks (Polyvinyl)

Steve Moore / Majeure: Brainstorm (Temporary Residence)

A Place to Bury Strangers: Onwards to the Wall EP (Dead Oceans)

The Saint James Society: s/t EP (Tee Pee)

Shlohmo: Vacation EP (Friends of Friends)

The Twilight Sad: No One Can Ever Know (FatCat)

Sharon Van Etten: Tramp (Jagjaguwar)

Jim White: Where it Hits You (Yep Roc)

Kieran Hebden & Steve Reid: NYC (Domino, 11/4/08)

Kieran Hebden & Steve Reid: "Between B & C"

London-born Kieran Hebden is the man behind the jazz/folk/electronic project Four Tet. Steve Reid is a seasoned jazz percussionist who has contributed to the sounds of jazz juggernauts for decades. Together they’ve found a way to bend instrumental opposites into a single outlet for whatever kind of music they want to make. It’s a fusion of two unique musical perspectives and identities, across different generations, that makes Hebden and Reid pioneers across a diluted musical landscape.

A 20-year-old Hebden was first exposed to Reid when British-based Soul Jazz Records released a compilation album featuring the song “Lions of Judah.” Eight years later and a few solo endeavors under the alias Four Tet led him to search for a drummer to work with. A mutual friend mentioned Reid, and the two were introduced in London.

The duo recorded two EPs in 2006, aptly dubbed The Exchange Sessions, and a full-length LP in 2007, Tongues. With Tongues, Hebden and Reid took to the road recording in different locations and absorbing the sounds of those places. “We went to Senegal and did some recording," Hebden says. "I think we got it in our heads, recording in different places…Steve’s been going on about doing a record in New York.”

On their fourth album, NYC, the pair did just that, heading back to Reid’s hometown to lay down another session of genre-defying music. “Nothing is bigger than New York; it’s a small representation of planet Earth,” Reid gushes, spouting contagious laughter every so often.

Likewise, Hebden and Reid’s musical tastes have always been a melting pot of sources, and their music reflects such an assortment. “The music I make is really different from the music I listen to,” Hebden says, citing several obscure blues reissues by off-the-radar record label Mississippi Records. Yet however varied their influences, the two often find themselves at the heels of the “free jazz” categorization.
 

“It’s about a commitment to your art. The money will come; the money will go. You can’t depend on the money. Depend on the talent and make it the best you can.”

When used in reference to the music that Hebden and Reid make, it’s hardly adequate, grasping blindly at the periphery of the duo’s eclectic sound. “I used more guitar and synth," Hebden says. "Playing guitar and sampling it in the songs…I think it’s the least jazz record we’ve ever done." The songs bellow with Reid’s drum beats and Hebden’s sequenced sound effects. Album opener “Lyman Place” is a layered crescendo of what sounds like an airplane readying for takeoff. The song climaxes with a jam session of water pumps, car alarms, wooden sticks, and chirping birds.

Lyman Place also happens to be a street in the south Bronx where Reid grew up, just a few doors down from renowned pianists Thelonious Monk and Elmo Hope. Each six-minute instrumental epic on NYC — “1st and 1st,” “Between B & C,” and “25th Street” — was named after other key locations in the 10-day recording session. “Places where we visited," Hebden says. "The street where [Reid] grew up…we spent 10 days there and were in those spots. The album was supposed to be a document of our time there.”

“Between B & C” was named for an area popularly known as Alphabet City on New York’s Lower East Side, which houses the city’s only mono-alphabetic streets, Avenues A through D. As Reid recalls, it was also an epicenter for great music. “It used to be a lively place, not just for jazz but a lot of the music in the ’70s," he says. "CBGB, there used to be a lot of clubs like that.” CBGB has since closed its doors, as have a majority of the venues that once populated Alphabet City. Reid laments, “In all the cities in the world, there are fewer places where there is a window for things that aren’t commercial.”

In contrasting degrees, both men have seen the landscape of music change. They impart their combined knowledge about the passage of time into their music, exploring history and tradition without a reliance on nostalgia. Reid maintains a positive perspective on the future of music despite his criticism of the present.

“It’s unfortunate that commercial music took such a large display," he says. "Calypso was commercialized into reggae. Mambo was commercialized into salsa…and when that happens, it’s a watering-down. That’s why they’re bringing back the old guys.”

After four albums, the two are still making music together, collaborating as equals and feeding off of each other’s artistic polarities. Reid speaks with an inherent optimism about their partnership. “He started as a guitar player and not just a computer guy," he says of Hebden. "He had a musical foundation. He had some background. It’s still about playing an instrument well.” Hebden responds with the same degree of reverence for Reid’s talents and spirit. “He’s very youthful in a lot of ways," he says. "He’s not trying to get back to anything. He’s always changing things up.”

Their dedication to a lifetime of music unites them. They aren’t doing anything tactical to change the face of music; their goals are humble. They’re simply playing it the best they can. And in the tradition of a drum-wielding priest, they act as a guide, leading this community towards longevity. Reid believes that many artists get sidetracked by the economics of the music industry.

“There are very few musicians left; most of them are bankers and businessmen,” he says. A grandfather of seven, Reid asserts a need for the next generation to have access to an array of sounds as well as a renewed spirit for the craft. “It’s about a commitment to your art,” he says. “The money will come; the money will go. You can’t depend on the money. Depend on the talent and make it the best you can.”

Austra: Feel It Break (Domino, 5/17/11)

Austra: "Beat and the Pulse"

Morrow: A DIY advocate from the Toronto underground, singer/multi-instrumentalist Katie Stelmanis is the force behind Austra, a new electro-pop trio that incorporates an operatic flare.  Stelmanis grew up learning the viola and piano while also singing in the Canadian Children’s Opera Chorus, and that vibrato vocal ability is what carries this Austra debut.

The musical complexity isn't as pronounced here as it was on Stelmanis' solo debut, Join Us, which preceded Feel It Break.  But both albums channel a moody yet melodic dance/electronic sound — a style that's sure to draw comparisons to The Knife.

Hajduch: Austra will immediately be compared to The Knife and to Zola Jesus.  Both comparisons are somewhat unfair.  The Knife's music is a lot more dynamic and dancefloor-motivated, and the vocals are frequently obscured.  Zola Jesus, by comparison, is a bit more drab and her voice isn't nearly as strong.  But when you have female vocals and minor-key synth pop, the comparisons are sure to follow.

I hated "Lose It" the first time I heard it (when it was accompanied by this oddly unsettling video), but the strength of the songwriting (love that bridge!) really won me over.  The album as a whole is well written and well produced, but I think that it will lose some points for maintaining that slow dancefloor throb for its entire duration.

Morrow: The life-flashing-before-your-eyes reflection of that video is cool, but it also seems weird for the sake of being weird — and it also features bare feet on a dirty floor.  Minus more points.

I agree that the constant dance feel makes the album drag a bit (ironically).  It's a little prettier and more direct than Join Us, which will allow more listeners to get into it, but I would have liked a few of those older elements to help break up the feel a bit.

Hajduch: It's too bad that the album has such a monolithic feel, because it's strong the whole way through.  Stelmanis' voice is really striking, and the piano and synthesizers all sound great.  The album's only flaw is too much of a good thing.  But for anybody who likes the aforementioned bands or synth pop in general — the type of person who lives in a minor key hovering around 125 BPM, anyways — Austra's Feel It Break comes very highly recommended.

The Kills: "DNA"

British garage-rock band The Kills just released its fourth album, Blood Pressures, on Tuesday, and today, with the help of Domino, we're giving you chance to win it on CD. It has been three years since the band's last record, Midnight Boom, was released. It's high time, too, as the track above (available for download here) shows that the duo's dynamism could only remain dormant for so long.

If you're feeling lucky, just fill out the form below, and you'll be entered to win.

Update: Contest has ended.

Blueprint: Adventures in Counter-Culture (Rhymesayers)

Blueprint: "So Alive"

Known for his lyrical virtuosity, Columbus MC Blueprint won fame as half of Soul Position with legendary indie-rap producer RJD2. After that group dissolved, he produced and released an admittedly retro solo album in 2005 (called 1988) and went six years without releasing a new solo LP.

But while RJD2 has spent his time moving away from hip hop, Blueprint’s new record, Adventures in Counter-Culture, makes it clear that he has spent his time going deeper.  The album’s first song, “Go Hard or Go Home,” serves as the album’s manifesto. Over a beat with droning, echoing synthesizers, Blueprint outlines his intentions: “I’ma tear rap down, then rebuild the shit, with total disregard of if the pieces even fit.”

Distant, sterile, inorganic synthesizers dominate the beats, serving as an aural complement to Blueprint’s lyrical themes of disconnection and alienation.  Certain sounds draw more comparisons to Brian Eno than a rap song, whereas other tracks (“So Alive,” for example) are agreeably soulful synth-rockers.  There are a few unfortunate moments of seeming machismo, but there also are moments that praise intellect over ignorance ("My Culture") and that defiantly slam mass-appeal pandering ("Radio-Inactive").

- Text by Tom Harrison. Read the full review here.

3:33: 333EP1 (Parallel Thought LTD / Alpha Pup)

3:33: "333N4"

With an identity currently under wraps, 3:33 makes its mysterious debut with 333EP1, a seven-track introduction that falls somewhere between sample-based experimentalism and dark, instrumental hip hop.

Eerie, atonal backgrounds either establish a brooding atmosphere or introduce massive, head-nodding, and often-distorted hip-hop beats. Melancholy piano loops offer some of the EP’s only real melodies, while the rest is built from rustling, jangling, shrieks, whispers, and whirring electronics. Apt comparisons can be made to industrial hip-hoppers Dälek, particularly after hearing the bonus digital cut of “333N4,” a vocal version that features guest rappers Del the Funky Homosapien and Tame One.

The Kills: Blood Pressures (Domino)

The Kills: "Satellite"

Comprised of American vocalist Allison Mossheart and British guitarist Jamie Hince, international duo The Kills has spent three albums drawing interest for its lo-fi but bottom-heavy blend of bluesy rock riffs, electronic beats, and harmonized boy/girl vocals.

Blood Pressures displays the same diversity of sounds as on previous albums, moving from up-tempo fuzz rockers to string-backed piano ballads.  Then there's the electro-dub feel of "Satellite," an infectious single that reflects the best of Blood Pressures — gritty bass and synth distortions beneath Hince's resonant guitar licks and Mossheart's haunting whoa-ohs.

Though each track maintains the duo's minimalism, Blood Pressures feels as complete as any Kills album, and it might be the strongest from start to finish.

Chancha via Circuito: Río Arriba (ZZK)

Chancha via Circuito: "Cumbion de las Aves"

Assembled by Argentine producer Pedro Canale, the sounds of Chancha via Circuito channel the native drum traditions of Argentina, Peru, Bolivia, and other music-rich South American nations while mixing in modern electronic and percussive elements.

Whereas Rodante, Canale's first album, explored cumbia — a cross-continental dance style with roots in the slave trade, incorporating both native South American and African influences — Río Arriba is a jump to folkloric sounds, now subtly recalling the "folklorica" of label-mates Tremor.

Though still minimal, the music of Río Arriba includes new layers, with samples taken from many sources (such as the sporting sounds of "Deportes").  Interestingly, two of the first three tracks are remixes, including one of sociopolitical folk singer/songwriter José Larralde's "Quimey Neuquén."  But ultimately, Río Arriba is an album that helps Chancha via Circuito establish a sound of its own — one that should continue to grow and flourish.

Colorlist: The Fastest Way to Become the Ocean EP (Serein)

Colorlist: "Light Conditions"

Colorlist, now on its third studio recording, is a dynamic Chicago duo (plus guests) that concocts ambient, polyrhythmic jazz that leans on loops and sequencers.  Though only 26 minutes long, The Fastest Way to Become the Ocean is just as adept at building and releasing as the previous releases by saxophonist Charles Gorczynski and percussionist Charles Rumback.

This is thanks, in part, to each member's multi-instrumental prowess: Gorczynski also mans the harmonium (an accordion-like keyboard instrument), synthesizers, and looping equipment, making him a sort of one-man harmony machine on top of Rumback's bells and melodica.

But the duo's penchant for building slowly and creating multi-layered sound collages is just as prominent, albeit with a key cameo on an impressive track: the scaling guitar of jazz virtuoso Jeff Parker (Tortoise, Exploding Star Orchestra), which echoes Gorczynski's sax midway through "Nine Lives" before taking its own path and disappearing into the distance.

Honorable Mentions

Abdullah Ibrahim & Ekaya: Sotho Blue (Sunnyside)

Débruit: Sis Sürpriz EP (Civil Music)

Henry Mancini: The Complete Peter Gunn (Chrome Dreams)

Mono/Poly: Manifestations EP (Brainfeeder)

Negura Bunget: Focul Viu live CD/DVD (Prophecy)

Rasputina: Great American Gingerbread (Rasputina Rarities & Neglected Items) (Filthy Bonnet)

Timber Timbre: Creep On Creepin’ On (Arts & Crafts)

V/A: Tron: Legacy Reconfigured (Disney)

As usual, ALARM leaves no genre unexplored in our list of this year's overlooked gems.

Sigh: Scenes from Hell (The End, 1/19/10)

Sigh: "The Summer Funeral"

With a history of fusing other revered genres to a doomy combination of black metal and thrash, Japan's Sigh used its eighth studio album to deliver symphonic, epic metal that calls upon classical instrumentation to top its rock foundation.

Brass, woodwind, and string instruments — as well as organ and piano — accent as well as lead sinister melodies that take surprising turns through fanciful themes. Raspy, menacing vocals coat each track, resulting in a dramatic presentation that isn't much at odds with its complex backdrop.

RJD2: The Colossus (RJ’s Electrical Connections, 1/19/10)

RJD2: "Games You Can Win"

Following a divisive album that saw the introduction of poppy, soulful vocals, producer RJD2 returned with something of a split release — an album that leaves no shortage of accessible, vocal-driven tunes but that emphasizes some inventive instrumentals.  Whether or not you dig the soulful RJ, there's no doubt that the music on The Colossus is some of his best to date.

Chicago Underground Duo: Boca Negra (Thrill Jockey, 1/26/10)

Chicago Underground Duo: "Spy on the Floor"

For 15 years, the Chicago Underground Duo (and Trio, Quartet, and Orchestra) has been an avant-garde jazz outlet for prolific Chicago musicians Rob Mazurek (Exploding Star Orchestra, Isotope 217) and Chad Taylor.  Boca Negra is an interesting dichotomy, as spiraling vociferation leads to upbeat grooves, shifting piano chords, harmonic electronics, and ambient samples.

Algernon: Ghost Surveillance (Cuneiform, 1/26/10)

Algernon: "Broken Lady"

The brainchild of guitarist Dave Miller, Algernon walks a thin line between melodically driven post-rock and instrumental unconventionality.  Ghost Surveillance places greater emphasis on synthesizers and sprawling song structures, but at its core is the combination of accessibility and technicality that has defined Miller's style. Noisy, circular rock riffs transform to tranquil, wandering passages. "Timekiller," the album's fourth track, is a beautiful, buoyant number — and one of the band's best creations to date.

Bei Bei & Shawn Lee: Into the Wind (Ubiquity, 1/26/10)

Bei Bei & Shawn Lee: "East"

In the hands of a marvel, the guzheng — a gorgeous Chinese zither — resonates with tactile beauty as its many strings are plucked with precision.

Bei Bei, a native of Chengdu, China, is one such musical technician. And this collaboration with Shawn Lee, a prolific producer who can man as many genres as he sees fit, is undoubtedly one of the year's finest albums.  Together, the two use Into the Wind to navigate through funky down-tempo jams, Kung-Fu flavor, hip hop, soul, and driving grooves.

Daníel Bjarnason: Processions (Bedroom Community, 2/1/10)

Daníel Bjarnason: "Bow to String I: Sorrow Conquers Happiness"

Best known as a conductor and arranger for indie groups such as Sigur Rós, composer Daníel Bjarnason also holds a lofty classical résumé. Processions, his proper debut, is, at many points, a challenging classical work.  Powerful cellos scale and race with crackling percussions before settling into gently bowed and pizzicato string accompaniments; easily half a dozen strings battle for dominance in a sorrowful, harmonic piece that resonates long after hearing it.  Undoubtedly, Processions is a daring and original debut.

Shining: Blackjazz (Indie Recordings / Distribution, 2/2/10)

Shining: "Fisheye"

Beginning as an experimental acoustic jazz ensemble, Norway's Shining — the brainchild of saxophonist Jørgen Munkeby — transformed to a progressive jazz-fusion outfit before delving into its darker side for a collaboration with black-metallists Enslaved.

Blackjazz pushes deeper into the band's dark recesses, forging a progressive industrial sound for the young century.  Big, complex rock riffs, twisted through gnarly distortion, form the foundation and support a mass of frantic, whirring synth lines and gut-wrenching black-metal screams.  In all, Blackjazz is a new epic — and perhaps the best metal album of 2010.

Pillars and Tongues: Lay of Pilgrim Park, LP + download (Endless Nest, 2/9/10)

Pillars and Tongues: "The Center of"

With just three members, Pillars and Tongues manages to craft powerful folk abstractions and interwoven, trance-inducing vocal dynamics. Both composed and improvisational, these shifting forms evoke spiritual vibes in their soulful essence, heavenly harmonies, and repeated patterns.

Dessa: A Badly Broken Code (Doomtree, 2/9/10)

Dessa: "Dixon's Girl"

The only female member of Minneapolis hip-hop collective Doomtree, Dessa is a spoken-word vocalist, singer, and MC whose awaited full-length was finally released earlier this year.

On A Badly Broken Code, her true solo debut, Dessa's vocal diversity is matched by its underlying music, ranging from hard-hitting beats and rhymes to lilting harmonic overdubs.

The Bastard Noise / The Endless Blockade: The Red List (20 Buck Spin, 2/16/10)

The Bastard Noise: "Mutant World of Shame / Underworld"

A spinoff of treasured "power-violence" hardcore group Man is the Bastard, The Bastard Noise is approaching its 20th anniversary of creating noisy electro-doom brutality.  For this split release with hardcore/punk experimentalists The Endless Blockade, the group utilizes the trademark drum-and-bass style of Man is the Bastard in combination with its far-out sounds.  The Endless Blockade contributes three tracks to the release — one 14-minute epic and two avant-garde remixes.

Freeway & Jake One: The Stimulus Package (Rhymesayers, 2/16/10)

Freeway & Jake One: "Know What I Mean"

Continuing his life after Roc-A-Fella Records, former freestyle star Freeway now makes his debut on Rhymesayers, a fitting new home — if only temporary before a move to Cash Money.  Fellow Rhymesayers standout Jake One provides a funky, malleable backdrop for Freeway's fiery delivery and lyrics that are alternately personal and light in content. And though Freeway deserves his accolades, Jake One's production is the MVP of this collaboration.

Carolina Chocolate Drops: Genuine Negro Jig (Nonesuch, 2/16/10)

Carolina Chocolate Drops: "Hit 'Em Up Style" (Blu Cantrell)

Beholden to the traditions of Americana and early African-American folk, the string trio Carolina Chocolate Drops continues blurring the lines of old and new. On Genuine Negro Jig, the group's fifth album, a few original numbers and a trove of traditionals take root in banjo, fiddle, and percussion. Three-part harmonies shimmer on the famous folk tune "Trouble in Your Mind," and simplicity shines on gripping renditions of "Why Don't You Do Right?" by Kansas Joe McCoy and "Trampled Rose" by Tom Waits.  Most surprisingly, Genuine Negro Jig includes an enjoyable rendition of "Hit 'Em Up Style," an unintentionally farcical pop hit by Blu Cantrell.

Mako Sica: Dual Horizon LP (La Société Expéditionnaire, 2/16/10)

Mako Sica: "I'Itoi"

A translation of the phrase "land bad," Mako Sica has more than a nominal Native American influence; the trio's distant vocal reverberations and dirge-inspired tunes recall the spirituality of America's original inhabitants.

Between the vocalizations of Brent Fuscaldo, the melodies of guitarist Przemyslaw Krys Drazek, and the rhythms of drummer Michael J. Kendrick, Mako Sica maintains a strong balance of abilities — with a brooding combination of jangly guitars, reverberated vociferation, and instrumental dynamics.

High on Fire: Snakes for the Divine (E1 Music, 2/23/10)

High on Fire: "Snakes for the Divine"

Stoner-metal trio High on Fire has built a devoted following over the past dozen years as fans fell in love with Matt Pike's gruff vocals and thunderous guitar riffs. On Snakes for the Divine, Pike uses his throat to channel Lemmy Kilmister; meanwhile, the band has picked up its pace and crafted an album that isn’t as outstretched. Hard-hitting riffery leads an effort that, though diverse at times, may be the band’s most driving release.

Jaga Jazzist: One-Armed Bandit (Ninja Tune, 2/23/10)

Jaga Jazzist: "One-Armed Bandit"

Five years have passed since we've heard the powerhouse melodies of Norway's Jaga Jazzist, the post-rock/"nü-jazz" conception of brothers Lars and Martin Horntveth.

One-Armed Bandit, immediately the group's best album, resembles symphonic prog rock, arguably a few steps removed from parts of Frank Zappa's expansive catalog and closer to countryman Jono El Grande's diverse and theatrical style.  This album, however, is much more cohesive than either of those comparisons suggest, and at times it is nearly overwhelming with grooves and harmonious refrains.

Rob Swift: The Architect (Ipecac, 2/23/10)

Rob Swift: "The Architect"

Turntablist/DJ Robert Aguilar, formerly of the X-ecutioners, has long utilized his love of jazz, R&B, and other musical movements to create compelling hip-hop instrumentals while displaying his tight beat-juggling skills.

The Architect is Swift’s foray into the classical world. In addition to a multitude of sampled styles and sounds, classical cuts comprise a substantial chunk of this Ipecac debut. Rearranged strings, organ, and horns often make the foundation of a given track, occasionally evoking high-tension Italian Westerns, as Swift’s scratches dance atop banging beats.

Rotting Christ: Aealo (Season of Mist, 2/23/10)

Rotting Christ: "Aealo"

For more than 20 years, Athens' Rotting Christ has traversed different directions on the metal path.  With its previous release, Theogonia, the group released a striking, original album that fused its dark sound to the ethnic sounds of its ancestors.

Like its predecessor, Aealo features female Benedictine chants, lingual pipes, and a medieval feel. Combined with dueling high-pitched harmonies and powerful guitar work, these new elements highlight an album that should be among the most original metal releases of the year.

Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté: Ali and Toumani (Nonesuch, 2/23/10)

Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté: "Ruby"

As two of Africa's most internationally renowned musicians, guitar legend Ali Farka Touré and kora phenom Toumani Diabaté have displayed impeccable abilities while integrating the styles of other cultures into their ethnic sounds.

Each Malian, the two collaborated for the acclaimed In the Heart of the Moon in 2005, shortly before Farka Touré's passing in 2006. Fortunately, the two set aside time to record new material before touring for In the Heart of the Moon, and the result is another beautiful set of duets that sees a posthumous release.

Throughout Ali and Toumani, Farka Touré roots each creation in melodious African-blues pieces. Diabaté's virtuosity accents each track in the form of fanciful scales, which at times evoke classical harpsichord passages, perhaps most notably on "Sabu Yerkoy."

Fang Island: s/t (Sargent House, 2/23/10)

Fang Island: "Sideswiper"

Mostly comprised of ex-Daughters, the good-time rock quintet Fang Island was one of the most quickly ascending bands of 2010, jumping onto tours with The Flaming Lips and Stone Temple Pilots following the release of its first full-length album.

The self-titled release is chock full of palm-muted and speed-infused indie-prog anthems, with über-layered vocal harmonies to go with a triple-thick guitar assault and distorted-bass bludgeoning.  It's one of those rare releases that feels absolutely radiant and thrashing at the same time.

B. Dolan: Fallen House, Sunken City (Strange Famous, 3/2/10)

B. Dolan: "The Reptilian Agenda"

Going way back with Sage Francis, rapper B. Dolan is a like-minded MC and slam poet whose style isn't terribly dissimilar to that of his long-time friend. Fallen House, Sunken City is Dolan's second full-length for Strange Famous, and it's full of the sociopolitical themes (if often in quick blasts or asides) and contentious delivery for which he's known.

In addition to some seemingly personal lyrics, Dolan takes passing shots at big business, taxation, the pharmaceutical industry, the concept of ownership of natural resources, the Israeli razing of Palestinian developments, and, among many other things, the so-called New World Order — dropping clips of Dick Cheney and George H.W. Bush in "The Reptilian Agenda."  On top of Dolan's socially conscious rhymes, A-list production by Alias makes this one of the year's top hip-hop releases.

Archie Bronson Outfit: Coconut (Domino, 3/2/10)

Archie Bronson Outfit: "Shark's Tooth"
Archie Bronson Outfit: "Shark's Tooth"

With its warbled vocals and driving percussion, British psych-rock trio Archie Bronson Outfit is like a more adventurous Wolf Parade — as comfortable burning up the dance floor with clean, bouncy riffs as it is turning up the reverb and rocking in a garage.

Coconut is the band's first LP in nearly four years, and it kicks off with a crunchy, swirling guitar line and a hypnotic bongo-laden beat. Produced by DFA's Tim Goldsworthy, Coconut gets spaced-out and drone-like at times, but it always offers a hint of pop accessibility amidst the static and haze.

This video is for the gritty new single "Ghetto Stars" from Mixed Race (Domino, 10/5/10), the new album from experimental trip-hop artist Tricky.  A resident of the UK, Tricky — a.k.a. Adrian Thaws — is currently touring the US and Canada in support of that release, and he's stopping at Lincoln Hall in Chicago on December 13.

For this week's giveaway, one winner will take home two tickets to Tricky's show at Lincoln Hall, plus a CD copy of Mixed Race.

To enter to win, complete the form below.

Update: Contest has ended.

It’s forgivable that Deradoorian is a bit preoccupied. She’s about to hop on a plane to LA after our interview and has just returned from SXSW performing with the Dirty Projectors and solo, promoting her new EP, Mind Raft.

With the release of the heavily buzzworthy Bitte Orca (Domino) garnering solid critical acclaim, and live dates with Björk, TV on the Radio, and David Byrne, many would consider this “the year of the Dirty Projectors.” Also in 2009, Deradoorian stepped onto stage by herself with her solo debut, in the midst of the Dirty Projectors’ hysteria.

“I grew up in California and went to a public middle school, so I did always feel really awkward, especially in eighth grade,” Deradoorian says. “Every girl was pretty much a huge bitch, and I didn’t know how to deal with that yet. I wasn’t interested in what they were interested in, so I really felt pretty isolated.”

Mind Raft, with its hushed, bedroom melodies and down-tempo moodiness, bears some of the scars of that high-school angst and reflects a young woman slowly coming to understand herself as an artist. “There’s definitely some sadness on the record,” Deradoorian says. “These were the first songs of mine that I felt were fit for public consumption. I found them to be the most sincere and compatible with my persona. I’m learning as I go.”

After relocating to New York from California, Deradoorian met Projectors’ leader David Longstreth and quickly formed a musical bond. From there, Deradoorian joined the circus and never looked back.

“I met Dave in 2006, like a month after I moved to New York,” Deradoorian says. “I was just around a lot because I knew some of his friends and played music with them, and he asked me to join soon after. Almost immediately, we went on tour with Grizzly Bear, and it was crazy. It took me about a year to adapt to Dave’s music and life on the road.”

As for the creative process, Deradoorian acknowledges her role in the band and is content to let Dave do his thing. “I’m just trying to do as good as I can,” she says. “Joining the band was incredibly exciting and something that I was definitely ready for, so I put all my creative energy into being as good as possible.”

While being a Dirty Projector provides fertile ground for experimentation, Mind Raft is a trip into the ether of Deradoorian’s mind. It’s by turns spacey and beautiful, eerie and unsettling.

“I don’t know if I want to divulge who influenced Mind Raft,” Deradoorian laughs. “I’m really into kraut rock. It’s really pleasing to my ears to hear something like Can. I also listen to a lot of classical and Middle Eastern music.”

The guzheng is a gorgeous Chinese zither whose existence dates back two thousand years. In the hands of a marvel, it resonates with tactile beauty as its many strings are plucked with precision.

Bei Bei, a native of Chengdu, China, is one such musical technician. And this collaboration with Shawn Lee, a prolific producer who can man as many genres as he sees fit, undoubtedly will be one of the year's finest albums.

Lee is no slouch, but his work really shines when he's coupled with a virtuoso. Together, the two use Into the Wind to navigate through funky down-tempo jams, Kung-Fu flavor, hip hop, soul, and driving grooves.

Bei Bei & Shawn Lee: "East" (excerpt)
Bei Bei & Shawn Lee: \"East\" (excerpt)

Algernon: Ghost Surveillance (Cuneiform)

The brainchild of guitarist Dave Miller, Algernon walks a thin line between melodically driven post-rock and instrumental unconventionality.

The quintet, based in Chicago, has drawn comparisons to hometown compatriots Tortoise — thanks to a vibraphone and a few jazz-inflected melodies — but it very much has established its own voice, particularly on Ghost Surveillance, its third album.

This album places greater emphasis on synthesizers and sprawling song structures, but at its core is the combination of accessibility and technicality that has defined Miller's style. Noisy, circular rock riffs transform to tranquil, wandering passages. "Timekiller," the album's fourth track, is a beautiful, buoyant number — and one of the band's best creations to date.

As always, the vibraphone work of percussionist Katie Wiegman offers a warm, harmonic accompaniment, but the group's best-supporting player may be drummer Cory Healey, whose wild fills and drum-and-bass moments imbue Ghost Surveillance with explosive bursts of energy.

Algernon: "Broken Lady"
Algernon: \"Broken Lady\"

Chicago Underground Duo: Boca Negra (Thrill Jockey)

For 15 years, the Chicago Underground Duo (and Trio, Quartet, and Orchestra) has been an avant-garde jazz outlet for prolific Chicago musicians Rob Mazurek (Exploding Star Orchestra, Isotope 217) and Chad Taylor.

Its size and scope has shifted, but Mazurek and Taylor have been the staples of the Chicago Underground name, melding improvisation with composition through a shifting balance of impulse and atmosphere.

Boca Negra is an interesting dichotomy, as spiraling vociferation leads to upbeat grooves, shifting piano chords, harmonic electronics, and ambient samples.

"Hermeto," for example, is built around a delicate keyboard melody, harmonizing surroundings, and a windy backdrop. "Spy on the Floor" follows with one of CUD's most straightforward grooves, coupling with Taylor's snare-rolling beat to craft a danceable tune.

Taylor handles the programming this time around, which helps to explain some of the duo's new sound. Long-time fans will recognize Boca Negra as being in the CUD ouvre, but they might be surprised at its scope.

Chicago Underground Duo: "Spy on the Floor"
Chicago Underground Duo: \"Spy on the Floor\"

Noah Creshevsky: The Twilight of the Gods (Tzadik)

Electronic composer Noah Creshevsky is a master of contrast, crafting musical patchworks from samples of orchestras, vocalists, pop music, and much more.

The Twilight of the Gods, his second album for Tzadik, is another wild series of rearrangements. Otherworldly performances rub against spliced sonic quilts. Scurrying bits of avant-classical weave in and out, bobbing between vocal undulations and interpretations of freeform rock and jazz.

This very much is for daring audiences, but regardless of preference, most listeners should agree that there is nothing quite like it.

Honorable mentions

Greg Burk: Many Worlds (482 Music)
Four Tet: There is Love in You (Domino)
Fredrik: Trilogi (The Kora)
Harvey Milk: s/t reissue (Hydra Head)
Yuka Honda: Heart Chamber Phantoms (Tzadik)
Joan of Arc presents: Don’t Mind Control compilation (Polyvinyl)
Sam Sadigursky: Words Project III: Miniatures (New Amsterdam)
Slow Six: Tomorrow Becomes You (Western Vinyl)
Univers Zero: Clivages (Cuneiform)