Justice - † (Cross) (FLAC)

If you're looking to party, pump yourself up, or bob your head involuntarily, my recommendation would be †. This album guarantees something for any fan of electronic music, even while being more abrasive than other French house artists like Daft Punk. It seems to be a little less repetitive than most house music, which is a definite plus. Variety always adds something engaging to the music. I can honestly say that the only sub-par track on the whole album is Tthhee Ppaarrttyy, and if you could take out Uffie's Ke$ha-esque voice, it would also be a great track.

Favorite tracks: Newjack, Phantom (Parts I and II), Stress

My rating: 9.0/10

Download it here.

Motionless - The Windmill EP (V0)

This EP was something I picked up from an old friend of mine in 2007, back when I was still going through my mainstream alternative rock phase. It sat on my shelf for about two years until more recently, when I discovered that I had neglected this unappreciated sliver of amazing post-rock for far too long. They are somehow still struggling to break free from popularity constraints and therefore they give their music away for free under a creative commons license, much like Andrei Machado's work, which I posted on this blog last Sunday.

The Windmill EP is simply post-rock with a touch of ambience, void of unnecessary crescendos, full of warm harmonies, delay-laden guitar and mellow piano sounds. They have a unique sound, at times delving into polyphonic rhythms and creating atmosphere upon atmosphere, and other times just letting the guitar say all that needs to be said.

The band seems to have stopped their creative output but they are still a part of Ericrock's label (along with The American Dollar, Gregor Samsa, Red Sparowes and Softer) so who knows what will happen in the future. They even played a show with Minus The Bear back in 2008.

Download here. Their music is free to share, but they have a very cheap merch store which can be found here. There are $2 posters, and for a dollar more you can get a FLAC copy of this wonderful EP.

Portishead - Dummy (FLAC)

When Beth Gibbons sings, "I'm so tired, of playing – playing with this bow and arrow," you know what she means. Her voice is seductive and inviting; intimate and elemental. Every word that spills from her mouth is hypnotic, and every instrument and percussive sound that supports it is only given context by what Gibbons reveals.

Download.

Portishead - Third (FLAC)

Third is a hauntingly atmospheric album by influential trip-hop group Portishead in 2008, and it was their first since their self-titled album eleven years prior. The first time I listened to this album was when I was just discovering trip-hop, and I was completely and utterly blown away. I wanted more like it, immediately. Then I found out that Third is quite unlike most trip-hop albums, at least from what I've heard. It's dark, it's mysterious, it's lonely, it's melancholy, and at times uneasy in its tone. Yet at the same time it's undeniably beautiful. Beth Gibbons teeters between sultry and heartbreaking throughout the entire run. Her voice juxtaposed against what could be considered unfitting and out of place beats strangely works to their benefit in a huge way. Every time you listen to this album you'll notice something you didn't before, or something will click with you in an entirely different way than it did last time you listened, giving it a huge amount of re-playability. I can't tell you how many times I've listened to front-to-back in this week alone, and still I am never bored of it. The entire album is amazing from start to finish, but it reaches it's peak with Machine Gun and it doesn't let up until the end. I honestly can't think of a single complaint I have with Third.

If you're into electronic, but have yet discovered trip-hop, this is a great place to start. But I think just about anyone can find something to enjoy here. I've never heard anything but praise for this album, so give it a listen and I'm sure you'll join the club.

Highlights: Hunter, The Rip, Magic Doors

Download here.

I battle my thoughts, I find I can't explain
I've traveled so far but somehow feel the same.

Telefon Tel Aviv - Immolate Yourself (V0)

Telefon Tel Aviv is a Chicago based electronic music group that was formed sometime around 1999 by Charles Cooper and Joshua Eustis. They released about 3 albums and a couple EPs, all of which are a blend of IDM and chillout electronic music. Immolate Yourself specifically is probably my favorite electronic album of all time, and it has continuously been a go-to album for me in the past year.

I can still remember hearing the album's opener, "The Birds," for the first time after I bought this album from their internet store. I can't imagine how many times I played that song, everywhere I went I had it playing, for about a month. The entire album is, in my opinion, wonderful. The music is so much more emotionally involving than most electronic music, in that it is rather melancholic in tone throughout much of the album. That, coupled with the fact that Charlie Cooper died not one week after the release of the album, makes for quite the listening experience. (There were, at first, rumors of suicide, but no conclusive evidence has been found.)

"The Birds" will always be my personal favorite of this album but they are all fantastic as a cohesive unit.

Download here and buy it here.

Devendra Banhart - What Will We Be (FLAC)

I saw Devendra play live today, and his demeanor struck me immediately. Here was someone playing in front of several thousand people, with a full band, with almost complete creative control, having any ego needs of his fulfilled completely by fans and newcomers alike, and the way he behaved was, to say the least, very humble. At one point he invited a member of the crowd to come on stage and perform an original song, and at that point I realized what had attracted M. Gira to Banhart while he was still signed to Young God Records. Shuffling, jiving and stumbling across the stage as he pours out his soul to a crowd of onlookers, Devendra is as magical as he is sincere.

If you've heard Rejoicing in the Hands, Banhart's breakout full-length from 2004, the transition between it and What Will We Be is incredibly satisfying. On the former, Banhart makes promises of surrealistic lyricism and musicality, but often only provides his guitar and voice to support those promises.

To anyone who has been following Devendra these last few years, it seems clear that What Will We Be is the natural culmination of all of his musical developments across the last decade. Surrounded by instrumentation that supports both his methodologies and his character, Banhart's new material is just as endearing as his old.

Love is light ignited.
(Download V0.)

The Blood Brothers - Crimes (V0)

"This is the sound of anorexic middle school girls being dunked into a vat of acid."

I think I stared at this blank page for about 30 minutes before realizing that I can't think of anything more perfectly descriptive of The Blood Brothers, and I think we need to organize a team to test whether or not its true. I'll get the acid, you get the middle school girls.

Check it, son, and be amazed.
The Blood Brothers - Peacock Skeleton Crooked Feathers
Download here.