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Selected Ambient Works Volume II [Expanded] (CD)

Aphex Twin
My favorite reissue of 2024. What’s there to say about this album? It’s a classic! Complete with beautiful packaging, 2 bonus tracks, and a remastered sound, this is a must-have for all ambient fanatics! Filed in: Electronica Read more

Memoir Of A Sparklemuffin (CD)

Suki Waterhouse
I feel like Suki is a bit of an underdog in the world of sad girl music. Which is a shame because this album is excellent. Killer pop with extremely dreamy sounding vocals- like they were recorded in an echo chamber. For fans of Mitski and Courtney Barnett. Filed in: Rock Read more

Eusexua (CD)

FKA Twigs
A total highlight of January 2025. This one’s more techno sounding compared to her other albums but still artsy af. Also great music to listen to while hacking. I’m in! Filed in: Electronica Read more

Moves In The Field (CD)

Kelly Moran
One of the most unique piano albums I’ve heard. It’s essentially a duet between her and a player- piano called a Disklavier. She programs the Disklavier to play these really fast and complex parts while she plays in whatever space she can find. The final product is completely breath-taking. Filed in: 20th Century Classical Read more

Negative Spaces (CD)

Poppy
Poppy’s heaviest album to date leaning further into nu metal! Filed in: Rock Read more

Imaginal Disk (CD)

Magdalena Bay
Ultra-groovy synthpop with a hint of prog rock. Bonus points for the crazy album art too. Filed in: Rock Read more

No Depression In Heaven (CD)

Midwife
Somber guitar centered-ambient music. Dream pop for sad goths. Filed in: Rock Read more

Down With The System (Book)

Serj Tankian
I've been a fan of System of a Down since the 6th grade so this was a page turner for me. An honest glimpse into Serj Tankian, the person, the musician, and the artist. It also provides a blunt but much needed explanation as to "why the hell hasn't SOAD made any new music????" Read more

Late Nights To Brooklyn

Virgo Four

The Chicago deep house pioneers are back with a full-length album!

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Total Blue (LP)

Total Blue

Smooth album of ambient/new-age music. Fans of the ECM label and fretless bass will find this blissful.

 

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Fire Escape (Other)

Alena Spangler

What if Joanna Newsom traded her harp for some digital synths and jammed with Kate Bush?

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Ample Habitat (LP)

Joseph Shabason & Ben Gunning

Jazz, sometimes leaning towards Herbie/Headhunters-style fusion, sometimes melting into a soft pile of synthisizer bloops.

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Nonetheless (CD & LP)

Pet Shop Boys

The boys have still got it!

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Fabiana Palladino (CD & LP)

Fabiana Palladino

Big 90s/00s r&b/pop vibes here, but less for the dancefloor and more for your headphones.

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The Doober (LP)

Sam Gendel & Sam Wilkes

Saxophone and bass duo give jazz takes of songs by Joni Mitchell, Sheryl Crow(!), and David McCallum/David Axelrod ("The Edge").

 

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Super-Cassette (Cassette)

Dabrye

A new album of instrumental electronic hip-hop from this influential beat scene legend!

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City Pop (LP)

Coco Bryce

Don't be confused by the title- this is contemporary drum 'n bass by one of the leaders of the new guard.

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Spirit Only (LP)

Becker & Mukai

Low-energy, dubby jams in the style of Krautrock kings Can.

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Ben (BLU)

Ben (BLU)

I was expecting Ben to suck but it's actually kinda badass? The relationship between the kid (good little actor) and Ben is effective and there's an alluringly surreal quality to this film. Take, for instance, the townsfolk: after each rat attack, said locals gather to observe the aftermath and just stand there silently, frozen in place like a still life. This happens several times and it's very strange. Equally weird is the fact that the ten year old boy is an incredibly gifted musician and songwriter who sits at a piano and writes the title song off the top of his head. He plays Moonlight Sonata on a harmonica at one point. Gene Siskel gave Ben a highly positive review, praising the film for its successful mixture of gross-out horror and genuine drama. He was right. It's a rock solid b-movie.

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Staff:
Phil Karlson

Cosmopolis (BLU)

David Cronenberg

Moving up my Cronenberg list. The surreal atmosphere of Cosmopolis could choke a horse; all the elements are off-kilter yet easily recognizable. Unmistakably this planet, the era we inhabit. Eric Packer, the dead-eyed billionaire who cruises through a cramped and crumbling urban hellscape in his tomb-like stretch limo, feels real to us despite behaving like a fucking alien. He displays no visible emotion for any living thing, or the fact that his empire is dissipating all around him, but cries his eyes out over a dead pop star he's never met. Like most of Croney's recent efforts, it's heavier on ideas than on spectacle and largely driven by dialogue. It's not easy to get on board with the unusual melding of Cronenberg and DeLillo, but this time around I was fascinated. Cosmopolis is a layered, relevant piece of work where every line delivered both speaks to our world and helps evoke an entirely new one.

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