Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma (2010)

The first thing to be said about Cosmogramma is that it is, in any aspect, an album which is way ahead of its time. In fact, it is probably the most futuristic record I have heard since Radiohead's Kid A (no surprise Thom Yorke contributed a vocal track on this one). Flying Lotus' genius Steve Allison blends all kinds of musical genres into a complex, multilayered masterpiece: Hip Hop, House and Free Jazz just to name some of them. The result sounds strangely accessible and organic, considering such an insane effort. In a recent interview the artist himself described his work as an experimental space opera, which pretty much sums up what the album sounds like: Pop music for the 23rd century.

1.) Clock Catcher

2.) Pickled!

3.) Nose Art

4.) Intro/A Cosmic Drama

5.) Zodiac Shift

6.) Computer Face/Pure Being

7.) ...And the World Laughs With You

8.) Arkestry

9.) Mmmhmm

10.) Do the Astral Plane

11.) Satelllliiiiteee

12.) German Haircut

13.) Recoiled

14.) Dance of the Pseudo Nymph

15.) Drips/Auntie's Harp

16.) Table Tennis

17.) Galaxy in Janaki

The Black Keys - Rubber Factory (2004)

When it comes to the Black Keys, many comparisons have been drawn to The White Stripes. Both guitar/drums duos with a retro sound and their roots in traditional blues, there is one fundamental difference between those two. While The White Stripes play 21. century garage punk versions of old Mississipi Delta blues songs, The Black Keys do not care too much about redefining the genre. All the songs on Rubber Factory could easily be at least 40 years old. The amazing thing about this record is that, even though its vibe is pretty retro, it sounds incredibly dirty and fresh. The Black Keys deliver modern songs written in a timeless traditional fashion; and that is what makes this album extraordinary.

1.)  When the Lights Go Out

2.) 10 a.m. Automatic

3.) Just Couldn't Tie Me Down

4.) All Hands Against His Own

5.) The Desperate Man

6.) Girl is on My Mind

7.) The Lenghts

8.) Grown so Ugly

9.) Stack Shot Billy

10.) Act Nice and Gentle

11.) Aeroplane Blues

12.) Keep Me

13.) Till I Get My Way

Hype! (1996)

Hype! is a 1996 documentary by independent filmmaker Doug Pray, that portrays the rise of grunge music in early 90's Seattle from within the scene. Besides tons of interviews and rare concert footage from rather unknown acts, it also features plenty of material by such Seattle bigshots as Pearl Jam, Soundgarden or Nirvana (including a video of the first-ever live performance of Smells Like Teen Spirit). The real focus, however, is on the role of the media and music industry in the creation and exploitation of the boom.  For anybody who is even slightly interested in music history this film is a must see. Hype! brilliantly captures the spirit and raw energy of a whole generation as well as the hype which ultimately destroyed grunge.

The Meters - The Meters (1969)

Unlike many of their fellow funk acts of the late 60's and early 70's The Meters never made much use of excessive soloing or wild percussion. The center of their musical universe, as well as every Meters song, is the groove. With their roots in classic New Orleans blues and R&B rather than funk, they play laid back tunes driven by vibrant drumming, muddy organ hooks and a range of minimalistic blues and surf guitar riffs. The album's tight-as-fuck opener Cissy Strut is easily the coolest groove ever written. 

1.) Cissy Strut

2.) Here Comes the Meter Man

3.) Cardova

4.) Live Wire

5.) Art

6.) Sophisticated Cissy

7.) Ease Back

8.) 6v6 La

9.) Sehorn's Farm

10.) Anne

11.) Stormy

12.) Sing a Simple Song

13.) The Look of Love

14.) Soul Machine

Jamie T - Panic Prevention (2007)

Have you ever wondered how The Street's "Original Pirate Material" may have sounded if Mike Skinner had been born with a soft spot for punk rock and recorded the album with real instruments instead of digital programming ? London-born Jamie Treay's debut is as close as it gets. Treays spits his angsty poetry over raw sketches and acoustic instrumentals and, along the way, manages to melt half a dozen musical genres to pure awesomeness. Well, what more can be said about an album that opens with the line:  "I went to buy myself a handgun; why you think man, to shoot down everyone!"

1.) Brand New Bass Guitar

2.) Salvador

3.) Calm Down Dearest

4.) So Lonely Was the Ballad

5.) Back in the Game

6.) Operation

7.) Sheila

8.) Pacemaker

9.) Dry Off Your Cheeks

10.) Ike & Tina

11.) If You Got the Money

12.) Alicia Quays

Portishead - NYC Roseland (1998)

This is my favourite trip-hop album and one of the most innovative live records of all time. The whole album was recorded during a live show the band played in the NYC Roseland Ballroom on November 10th, 1998. It features alternate versions of songs from their first two studio albums, backed by a 35-piece orchestra.  Beth Gibbon's superb delivery paired with menacing arrangements make this record a dark, psychedelic masterpiece.

1.) Humming

2.) Cowboys

3.) All Mine

4.) Mysterons

5.) Only You

6.) Half Day Closing

7.) Only You

8.) Glory Box

9.) Sour Times

10.) Roads

11.) Strangers

Radio 4 - Gotham! (2002)

About half a decade before acts like Franz Ferdinand or Bloc Party broke through mixing 70's/80's wave and punk with danceable indie, NYC-based Radio 4  had already done the same on this jewel. Gotham!'s vibe is reminiscent of classic records by such legends as The Clash, New Order or Television but, at the same time, Radio 4 manage to be refreshingly inventive. The record turns out to be an intriguing hommage that would revive a whole genre formerly reputed to be dead .

1.) Our Town

2.) Start a Fire    

3.) Eyes Wide Open

4.) Struggle

5.) Calling All Enthusiasts

6.) Save Your City

7.) Speaking in Codes

8.) Certain Tragedy

9.) Red Lights

10.) The Movies

11.) End of the Rope

12.) Pipe Bombs

13.) New Disco

Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra - Who is This America? (2004)

Heavily influenced by African music in general and Nigerian legend Fela Kuti in particular, New York-based ensemble Antibalas marries Afro-Beats with Deep Funk. The vibe of their jams is carried by dead-on basslines, hypnotic percussion grooves as well as massive, sometimes threatening horn arrangements. Most of the time the songs take lots of time to build up; just to finally peak in orgiastic saxophone solos or a state of complete trance.

1.) Who is This America Dem Speak of Today?

2.) Pay Back Africa

3.) Indictment

4.) Big Man

5.) Obanla'e

6.) Elephant

7.) Sister

8.) Money Talks