People Under The Stairs - Acid Raindrops

When it comes to the type of Hip Hop I listen to, I tend to be exceptionally particular. As I can enjoy the Low Riders and LMFAO's of this world, I'm more inclined to listen to rap music that relfects the musical style of the Roots, Talib Kweli, Common, and Tribe Called Quest. People Under The Stairs is one of the most well known underground hip hop groups that formed in Los Angeles, CA circa 1997. Their style has been compared to that of Jurrasic 5, Tribe Called Quest, and The Pharcyde. What makes their sound unique, is that they tend use more to traditional forms of Djing and actively stay away from computer processed beats and sounds. P.U.T.S is known for their danceable beats and Jazzy feel which in part is due to the fact that they are known for finding inspiration in old funk and soul records.

Acid Raindrops - People Under ...

Broken Bells

When two musical icons collaborate together on an album it can go one of two ways. Luckily for James Mercer, lead singer of the Shins and Brian Burton of Danger Mouse (also half of Gnarls Barkley), their Album is getting a ton of buzz. The Garden State soundtrack, which is arguably one of the best ever, featured two songs from The Shins and helped expose them to a much larger audience. When James Mercer took on this side project I was really looking forward to hearing a new sound from him and although it's not terribly different from his previous work, I must say I'm really enjoying this album. Specifically "The Ghost Inside" and "High Road".

The Ghost Inside - Broken Bell...

The High Road - Broken Bells

Miike Snow - Sylvia

If you liked Miike Snow's hit songs Animal and Black and Blue (both of which are fantastic) and you haven't heard this one yet...I'm pretty confident you love it too.

Silvia - Miike Snow

Temper Trap - Fader

An incredible album and yet another song I cannot stop listening to.



If you've already heard of TT it's most likely because you've heard their hit song "Sweet Disposition". If you aren't familiar with them, get familiar.

At the moment Fader is my favorite song on their album Conditions, which was released in June 2009. However, I saw them this past Monday at the Music Hall of Williamsburg and I just had to include a live video of their performance of Drum Song. Watch and you'll see why.

The XX - Crystalized

I'm all about The XX right now. It's an album that you can listen to start to finish. Similar to the XX, Temper Traps 'Conditions' is another dope album which I'll be posting about later. XX is a three-piece indie rock band from London which debuted their first album in August 2009. Since then, they ranked on Rolling Stones best of the year list at #9 as well as single of the week on Itunes. Their music has been used in TV shows such as Gossip Girl, Grey's Anatomy, and 90210 to name a few. Crystalized is definitely their most well known song right now and I can't get enough of it. I've been listening to this album on repeat.

Lykke Li

This will be the first of many posts about Lykke Li. When I first saw this video, I fell in love with her as an artist. She has an incredible voice and a unique, relaxed yet sophisticated style. Everything about her is simply amazing.

This is an acoustic version of her song 'I'm good, I'm gone'. The original, 'I'm good, I'm Gone (Black Kids Remix)' happens to be one of my favorites songs on her album titled 'Youth Novels'. Check it out.

Edward Maya & Vika Jigulina - Stereo Love

For those of you stuck in your office on this beatiful day, I highly recommend turning your volume up and drifting off to St. Tropez. A little something to get you through the day.

Boombox - Midnight on the Run

About the Band:

Vintage Funk: Pretty Lights - Finally Moving

Pretty Lights music is the byproduct of digital sampling which combines bits and pieces of pre-recorded music to create a new genre of fresh/distinctive beats and sounds. “Finally Moving” is currently my favorite Pretty Light’s song, sampling work from Etta James. If you go to the Pretty Lights website you should be able to download all three albums for free and if you are already a DJ Shadow fan (who also uses sampling) you will love this.

For those of you that are New Yorkers like myself, Check out Pretty Lights Friday June 4th @ Terminal 5. Should be an awesome show. For you West coasters, Pretty Lights will be one of the many artists performing at Coachella this year. Enjoy.