Maribou State – Fabric Presents Maribou State: The middle of the album – beginning with Nu Guinea’s “Je vulesse” – leaves me a bit cold. I’ve fallen hard for the first nine songs, though, and they put me in the same mood as Norman Jay’s Journeys by DJ, which is one of my favorite deep house mixes.
Taylor Swift – Midnights: When I hit “Je vulesse” on the Maribou State record on this past cold Friday night, I couldn’t get past it. Midnights was a much better fit for my mood.
The Fear Ratio – Slinky: I prefer albums that maintain a theme or vibe from start to finish. I initially disliked the fact that they dropped in a couple of King Kashmere raps, but the more I listen, the more I hear a cohesive vibe that spans the gap between glitchy IDM and hip-hop.
Terranova – DJ-Kicks and Close the Door: “Plastic Stress” remains one of my favorite ‘90s trip-hop songs. Unlike my initial reaction to Slinky, the diversity of the tracks actually helps these two very different records maintain a cohesive vibe from front to back. Also, I’m reminded how much I like the cover photo of Close the Door.
Various Artists – Dragonfly Project II Trance: This 1993 record is a milestone in electronic dance music, since it’s arguably the first psychedelic trance compilation. Objectively, I know it’s completely dated, yet it still sounds fresh and exciting to me.
Pantha du Prince – Conference of Trees: One of my new year’s resolutions is to dig through the pile of music I’ve bought but not listened to. Conference of Trees is my first effort, and it’s a great start. I love the layering of long, stretched-out tones on “Approach in a Breeze.” At times the record reminds me of Pan American, one of my favorite artists of the past few decades.