764-Hero - Get Here And Stay (V0)

These guys are pretty great. They started up in the mid 90's with sound something like a mix of grunge and indie rock. They did a split with Modest Mouse in '98 that was phenomenal, but the rest of their music is equally impressive. The drummer did a thing with Elliot Smith, as well.

Great 90's independent rock. They were signed to sub-pop for a while, when they released their best album, Get Here and Stay.

Check 'em out.

Download here, buy it here.

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.

Helios - Eingya (V0)

Upon first listening to Eingya, I immediately decided I wanted to write about it instead of what I originally had planned for today. That's how much I loved it.

Eingya is more calming than most anything I've heard before. None of the songs are particularly catchy or stand out a lot, but it seems like that's the intent, as weird as that may sound. It's very mood/setting specific. If you put it on at a party or while you're looking to get hyped up and excited for something, then you're on the wrong track, going the opposite direction. But put this on while you're in a calm and comfortable place with your eyes closed and you’re relaxed I guarantee you'll become completely absorbed in it, and love every second. So while this music isn't incredibly versatile, what it does it does amazingly well. This album takes great instrumental compositions and then adds in elements of electronic in such a way that will take you on a experience like no other. The layers of instruments and sound used here are put so beautifully well together it's nearly seamless.

This would be an amazing introduction to ambient music for anyone who wanted to get into the genre. Even for those already experienced with ambient, if you haven't heard this album, I'm highly recommending you do so. There's not much else I can say that listening for yourself wouldn't say so much better. So listen, relax, and enjoy.

Highlights: Bless This Morning Year, For Years and Years, Paper Tiger

Download here.