Mouse on Mars - Autoditacker (1997)

Formed in Düsseldorf as early as 1993, electro-duo Mouse on Mars has been around for almost two decades now. By fusing a huge variety of electronica with a touch of ambient they soon became firmly established in the experimental house scence. The most exciting thing about their music is the fact that, in spite of its experimental nature - being typical headphones music (full of ambient soundscapes, spacy crackles as well as general weirdness) - it turned out quite danceable and did surprisingly well in the clubs. In this spirit,  Autoditacker is a gold mine for electro-aficionados.

1.) Sui Shop

2.) Juju

3.) Twift Shoeblade

4.) Tamagnocchi

5.) Dark FX

6.) Scat

7.) Tux & Damask

8.) Sehnsud

9.) X-Files

10.) Schnick-Schnack Meltmade

11.) Rondio

12.) Maggots Hell Wigs

The Microphones - The Glow, Pt. 2 (2001)

Centered around Washington lo-fi mastermind Phil Evrum, The Microphones deliver stunning low key indie pearls with at times bizarrely odd arrangements. On their third studio album the band carefully waves a carpet of distorted organs, sloppy percussion and random noise around Elvrum's fragile acoustic poetry. The Glow Pt. 2 is full of beauty and madness - a raw yet intimate masterpiece.

1.) I Want Wind to Blow

2.) The Glow, Pt. 2

3.) The Moon

4.) Headless Horseman

5.) My Roots are Strong and Deep

6.) Instrumental

7.) The Mansion

8.) (Something)

9.) Deep

10.) I'll Not Contain You

11.) The Gleam, Pt. 2

12.) Map

13.) You'll Be in the Air

14.) I Want to Be Cold

15.) I Am Bored

16.) I Felt My Size

17.) Instrumental

18.) I Felt Your Shape

19.) Samurai Sword

20.) My Warm Blood

Tortoise - TNT (1998)

Formed in Chicago in 1990 by Doug McCombs and John Herndon, Tortoise have been expanding their constantly changing line up ever since. They play cinematic instrumental jams influenced by Krautrock, Postrock and avant-garde Jazz music. This 1998 masterpiece is their most vivid and playful record, yet. Regardless of uniting a large variety of styles, TNT manages to be a surprisingly catchy and accessible work of genius.

1.) TNT

2.) Swung From the Gutters

3.) Ten-Day Interval

4.) I Set My Face to the Hillside

5.) The Equator

6.) A Simple Way to Go Faster Than Light That Does Not Work

7.) The Suspension Bridge at Iguazú Falls

8.) Four-Day Interval

9.) In Sarah, Mencken, Christ and Beethoven There Were Women and Men

10.) Almost Always is Nearly Enough

11.) Jetty

12.) Everglade

Boxcutter - Oneiric (2006)

Somewhere between dancefloor and armchair, Northern Irish genius Barry Lynn a.k.a. Boxcutter found his niche. Lynn fuses intelligent dance music with dubstep, resulting in eccentric sound collages. The whole album is a dreamlike, stunningly beautiful experience and definately worth a listen if you enjoy experimental electronica.

1.) Tauhid

2.) Grub

3.) Skuff'd

4.) Gave Dub

5.) Brood

6.) Mossy

7.) Rikta

8.) Sunshine V.I.P.

9.) Bad You Do

10.) Silver Birch Solstice

11.) Hyloz

12.) Chlorophyll

US3 - Hand On The Torch (1993)

London-based project US3 fuses Old School Hip Hop and Jazz to a laid-back melange. No bitches, crack and bling bling here! All samples on the album are taken from the large catalog of the legendary Blue Note label.

1.) Cantaloop

2.) I Got It Goin' On

3.) Different Rhythms, Different People

4.) It's Like That

5.) Just Another Brother

6.) Cruisin'

7.) Go To Work

8.) Tooka Yoot's Riddim 

9.) Knowledge Of Self

10.) Lazy Day

11.) Eleven Long Years

12.) Make Tracks

13.) The Dark Side

Death From Above 1979 - You're A Woman, I'm A Machine (2004) + Remixes

The most impressive thing about Toronto-based Death From Above is that the band only consists of two people. The sheer fury of Sebastian Grainger's  napalm drum beats in combination with  Jesse Keeler's  fuzzy, heavily distorted razorblade basslines sounds like a whole army rocking out. This album fuses punk and dance music to 100% pure in-your-face badassery. 

One year after You're A Woman I'm A Machine DFA released a similarly impressive album with Romance Bloody Romance which features 13 remixes  by a variety of very distinct artists, including Queens of the Stone-Age's Josh Homme and EdBanger poster-child Justice.

Wes Montgomery - The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery (1960)

Wes Montgomery manages to breathe new life into a variety of great jazz standards on this record, which is arguably the best album released during his Riverside period. Montgomery's unique picking technique - using his thumb instead of a plectrum- as well as his excessive use of octaves generated a unique playing style and sound that has been copied ever since.

1.) Airegin

2.) D-Natural Blues

3.) Polka Dots and Moonbeams

4.) Four on Six

5.) Westcoast Blues

6.) In Our Own Sweet Way

7.) Mr. Walker

8.) Gone With the Wind

Los Delinqüentes - Recuerdos Garrapateros de la Flama y el Carril (2006)

The Jeréz de la Frontera-based flamenco-fusion trio Los Delinqüentes mixes classic Andalusian flamenco with rock n' roll and feel good melodies. This album is a tribute to their frontman Miguel Benítez, who died of a cocaine overdose in 2004. It features re-recordings of the best tracks from their first three studio albums (with guest musicians singing Miguel's parts) as well as half a dozen unreleased tracks. I cannot remember any other band that sounds as much like summer as these guys. 

1.) Somos

2.) Pirata del Estrecho

3.) Nube de Pegatina

4.) La Primavera Trompetera

5.) Uno Más

6.) Chiclana

7.) Poeta Encadenado

8.) Después

9.) De los Matorrales

10.) Trabubulandia

11.) El Aire de la Calle

12.) Caminito del Almendro

13.) Duende Garrapata

14.) El Rey de Regaliz

15.) Ya Nadie te Quiere

16.) Esos Bichos que Nacen en los Claveles

17.) El Abuelo Frederick

18.) Chinchetas en el Aire

19.) La Luz de Lorenzo

Pole - 3 (2000)

German producer Stefan Betke ,who named himself after the Waldorf 4 Pole-Filter, has made some of the most interesting ambient records of the past two decades. On his third album he coats minimalist dub hooks  with dozens of layers of tape hiss, reverb and crackles. Due to the analog recording process the sound is incredibly warm and organic. Pole's dreamy at times hypnotic soundscapes best unfold, when listened with headphones.

1.) Silberfisch

2.) Taxi

3.) Karussell

4.) Überfahrt

5.) Rondell 2

7.) Klettern

8.) Strand

9.) Fohlenfurz

Herbie Hancock - Head Hunters (1973)

Being the top-selling jazz album of all time and the funkiest album ever to be added to the catalog of the U.S. National Recording Registry Head Hunters is a groundbreaking masterpiece in jazz fusion. A funky as shit blend of killer jazz grooves, insane solos and the characteristic outer space tone of Hancock's Fender Rhodes E-Piano, this album sounds as it had been recorded in another dimension. It is simply unbelievable how tracks that start off as simplistic as "Sly" or "Chameleon" suddenly gather momentum, just to ultimately catapult themselves into an acid trip of kick-ass wizardry.

1.) Chameleon

2.) Watermelon Man

3.) Sly

4.) Vein Melter