Electronica

ss=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: auto 0in”>Trading post-punk for paranoia, Bloc Party now aggressively offers “Intimacy,” an often interesting but inconsistent electronic-infused album. Startling and abrasively catchy, “Mercury” is the best summation of the band’s new direction. While the straight-ahead, jumbled guitars of “Halo” offer a familiar flashlight to committed fans, the cascades of big-beat-inspired, Chemical Brothers-esque drums […]

1320  In the realm where jam bands and electronica meet, Sound Tribe Sector 9 rules them all. “Peaceblaster,” the eco-friendly California quintet’s fourth studio album, begins with the pulsating rhythms and plugged-in funk that inform its brand of instrumental rock. It’s a place where purposeful noodling meshes with instant-hook harmonies, jazz influences and unique instrumentation […]

Columbia Luckily, an Academy Award, multiplatinum sales success and a reality TV series haven’t wiped any discernible grime off Three 6 Mafia or “Last 2 Walk,” its latest release. The album swells from the signature grit invented and perfected by the group, well-known for sinister synthesizers and lyrical growl. “Trap Boom” is explosive, as is […]

Metropolis To listen to a Juno Reactor album is to be transported to an intergalactic space station where astronauts drink not Tang, but Red Bull. The brain child of Ben Watkins, the electronica act has specialized in high-energy, jungle-rhythm trance for nearly 20 years. Although not a household name, Juno Reactor has been a pioneer […]

Island It’s been a decade since English electronic trio Portishead have released a proper album, but the trip-hop silence has been broken with “Third”‘ a terrific collection of songs that would make any fan further lament the group’s years of stillness. “Machine Gun” is familiar, but strikes a new tone: more visceral and industrial with […]

Defected Despite delivering a choice debut of originals in 1996’s “Sacrebleu,” Dimitri from Paris is best-known for his DJ mixes, especially 2000’s well-received “A Night at the Playboy Mansion.” The fancy Frenchman now follows up that effort with the twice-as-long but not twice-as-great “Return to the Playboy Mansion.” “Return” segregates its mixes into two distinct […]

Chop Shop/Atlantic Kansas City, Mo.’s The Republic Tigers have released a four-song EP that is interestingly ambient, yet catchy enough not to fade into background noise.   “Sinkin’ Annie, Down, Down, Down, Down” sounds sweet, with pursed vocal melodies on top of slow keyboard-backdrop bleeps. Secondary vocals ride just behind the lead voice, layering harmonies […]

  Astralwerks Since 2006’s “The Warning,” electro pop-rockers Hot Chip have been a hit among Euro-savvy hipsters yearning for a synthesizer-infused tribute to Kraftwerk and club music from across the pond.   The English band’s newest album, “Made in the Dark,” slated for a Feb. 5 release stateside, is thick with growling synths, disco dance […]