Dead Line – Stockfinster

Here’s another one that came my way courtesy of the good folks over at Phlow. I’ve been on this kick lately of searching for releases and artists that use a lot of ambient textures but who can keep the music going with a pop drive, and Dead Line by Stockfinster completely fits the bill. If you can get past some of the glitchy trance-house fills incorporated by the drum programming, and I hope you can, you’ll find that this is a consistently engaging full length release, full of hooks and excellent song writing.

In parts, the overall release puts me in mind of Enigma, though I know that’s a comparison that can be taken many ways. I mean it in the good way – technical sophistication, ambient moods, suggestive but not overpowering vocals. All the things a person might go back to Enigma for, but less predictable and more edgy. For myself, I like the heavy synth sounds and the bass grooves. Phlow dubs this release as “Epic Electronic Prog Pop,” and there’s not much I can say to improve on that.

Click to hear the first track, Push Push.

Best of Juanitos – Jamendo

I was holding out for a dark ambient release, or even a light ambient one, to feature in my first review. But then I came across these guys courtesy of a recent Phlow mixtape and have hardly listened to anything else since. The reviews and blurbs on the corresponding Jamendo page tend to emphasize the 60’s vibe and the summer-fun-surf-rock aspects of the music – that’s all fine, but what really grabs me is how tight the band is and how adept they are at cramming the groove into your ear-hole. There’s tons of hooks, and the organ work in particular stands out for adding some funk and jazz riffs without overdoing it. Even the forays into salsa and meringue, which I’ve never much cared for, are big on low end groove. The singing is gritty, and the sound is clean but not over-produced. All in all this is one of the funkiest and most beneficially mood-altering releases – commercial or otherwise – that I have heard in a long time.

Favorite tracks are Glitter Bomb and Supernatural.