Spotlight On Music: Koop

Sweet vocal jazz for the post-club generation that could have been made decades ago, The music of Koop finely treads the line between the hipster posturing and lounge perfection. Lush orchestration and hard bop rhythms make Koop a pleasing sensation. Their Music has been constantly been in heavy rotation on our playlist since 2002 and cannot see it leaving anytime soon.

Pet Shop Boys Create Pandemonium

Pet Shop Boys have covered a lot of ground in their career, from high-art projects such as soundtracking Eisenstein's silent film classic Battleship Potemkin to pure frothy pop moves such as recording their latest album, Yes, with Girls Aloud producer Xenomania.

It's still somewhat unexpected, however, to find that the key visual reference for their latest, Es Devlin-designed show is Pink Floyd's relentlessly gloomy prog-rock epic The Wall. Happily, where Pink Floyd's wall gradually isolated the band from their audience, the Pet Shop Boys' equivalent was much more fun. The duo initially appeared from doors within it, their heads encased in coloured cubes, and kicked off with their chart-topping 1988 hit, Heart. The set that followed was peppered with new songs, notably Pandemonium, which segued, only partially successfully, into their classic Can You Forgive Her?.

Listen to our Pet Shop Boys career retrospect HERE

Music For Men by Gossip

As a musical statement of intent to the throngs of the newly interested, Music For Men shows a clear picture of who Gossip want to be--a New Millennial Madonna for whom Danceteria never closes. But for those who have been following Gossip's career, waiting with bated breath to see how the band will evolve, this new record may feel a little too much like they are still Standing in the Way of Control.

Major Lazer by Diplo and Switch

Diplo and Switch clearly cherish the glitches and low-tech glory of vintage Jamaican music. But they’re much better off when re-imagining as opposed to indulging in tongue-in-cheek mimicry. In retrospect, this album was inevitable, given Diplo and Switch’s groundbreaking production work with avant-garde artists like M.I.A. and Santigold.

Michael Jackson Dies, MTV King Of Pop

Michael Jackson

August 29, 1958 - July 25, 2009

No matter what your opinion of Michael Jackson, no one can deny the talent he exuded while performing on stage. Michael not only shaped generations but was highly influential to the creation and success of MTV. I myself remember saving up enough allowance money to purchase my replica of the jacket worn in the video "Bad". I would put on a pair of black floods, loafers, white glove and fedora only to run to the concrete slab in front of our garage to perform as best I could my version of "Billy Jean". My fondest moment was staying up with my family gathered around the television set for Motown's 25th Anniversary. Although I lost interest in Michael's music after the "Bad" years, I will always remember the years of enjoyment he not only gave me but the world.

In honor of this talent, I have put together a jukebox spanning the career

of Michael Jackson for you to enjoy.

We also encourage you to comment with your stories of how Michael impacted your life.

Blood From A Stone by Hanne Hukkelberg

Her ability to sound so eccentric yet create music so inherently comfortable is no small feat; by now, we know that wherever she goes to write her albums, and whatever bric-a-brac she ends up playing, the end result is always going to be sublime, and Blood From a Stone is no exception. This is a singer's album, highlighting Hukkelberg's voice above all else.

It's Not Me, It's You by Lily Allen

Greg Kurstin helped deliver everything both artist and mercenary label boss could wish for. Songs that are ultra-modern and instantly accessible, fun but never cheesy, experimental but rarely try-hard. There's an assurance about its adjustments to her musical formula, its contents sing loud enough to drown out even the siren song of the patisserie. On of our favorites of an otherwise uninspired year.

Blood by Franz Ferdinand

While not every song is a rousing success, Blood feels fresh and alive--and underscores that Franz Ferdinand should take chances like this more often. Really, the only audience for Blood is the utter completist who’s going to need “Be Afraid” or the latecoming devotee who missed out on Blood as a pack-in with Tonight. I am not a fan of Franz Ferdinand but each listen of this album might just make me one.

Tracey Thorn Exclusive Mixes

One of the most enduring English singer/songwriters since the early '80s, Tracey Thorn began making music with the all-female quartet Marine Girls, a minimalist pop group that released a pair of albums.

She also recorded A Distant Shore, a relatively moody, if similarly skeletal solo album, for Cherry Red in 1983.

Around that time she met Ben Watt -- who was also signed to Cherry Red -- and formed a partnership as Everything But the Girl. From 1984 through 1999, Thorn and Watt released ten albums that shifted from indie pop to slick sophisti-pop to downtempo club music.

Shortly after having twin daughters together, they put EBTG on ice. After several years of inactivity, Thorn began writing again and recorded her second solo album, Out of the Woods, which was released in early 2007. Throughout the years, she has guested on songs by a number of groups, including the Style Council, the Go-Betweens, Massive Attack, and Tiefschwarz. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide.

Click on any track to start listening.

My Tronic by Nite Club

My Tronic, the second album from indietronica artist Nite Club, combines cross cultural elements found in old & new school hip hop with an indie rock and dance aesthetic. Beautiful synths meet timeless breaks and impassioned vocals to create an introspective listening experience somehow suitable for both solo listening and dancefloors. Recommended for fans of The Junior Boys and the solo work of Erlend Oye.

Lit by Malcolm Kipe

Lit is a get down and dirty piece focused on the aesthetics of raw sample based hip hop and the nasty sampling habits of Malcom Kipe. This is a collection of 52 minutes of beats and instrumentals composed of twenty tracks made and polished in 2004 & 2005. This album is strongly influenced early 90's hip hop production and excessive crate digging.

Treny by Jacaszek

Chamber music chopped 'n' screwed might sound absurd, but it's actually a decent description of Treny, the third album by Poland's Michael Jacaszek, which counters slow, mournful waves of string and voice with deft, delicate cuts and odd, against-the-grain dovetailing garunteed to lull you into an almost beatific state,

Llama by Savath and Savalas

La Llama, S&S’s fourth album, is in many ways a continuation of the trajectory initiated with Apropa’t. Having experimented with other vocalists in the interim, La Llama is a reconnection with that mines more deeply into the psychedelic territory hinted at before. Citing the small 70s independent folk scene based in Recife, Brazil as a guiding influence.

Amatoria by Frederico Aubele

Amatoria reveals Aubele’s voice as relaxed and in the mood, with no reservations. While a handful of tracks focus on love’s suckier sides—the breakups, breakdowns, and bittersweet moments in the slow burning tango of “Otra Vez”—Amatoria is overwhelmingly sensual, drawing on the tradition of Spanish erotic poetry and evoking the taste of a first powerful kiss (on “El Sabor”), and very intimate.

Take To The Sky by Kat Edmonson

It takes more than vocal ability to make me pay attention to yet another young singer cruising through the Great American Songbook. It takes imagination which chanteuse Edmonson not only shows on her renditions of standards but suprisingly with her version of the "Just Like Heaven" by The Cure. Perhaps Marc Collin of Nouvelle Vague fame should take note.

Divided by Night by Crystal Method

Divided by Night is indeed varied and polished, and it includes guest features by the bucketful, but it reveals again that, more than anything, the Crystal Method are merely clever regurgitators of the past, particularly chained to making extroverted dance music that never innovates and rarely excites. This is merely a not-so-fresh batch of rave-rock jock jams seemingly designed to advertise a car you can no longer afford.

3 by Nouvelle Vague

After a successful run with both their debut and follow-up, Nouvelle Vague releases the third cleverly titled installment of new wave bossa covers followed by much dissapointment. It is evident on "3" that Nouvelle Vague has run its course. The only highlight here is their bouncy rendition of "Blister In The Sun". We suggest you skip this release and opt for a listen to our jukebox of covers below.

click any track to begin