[contextly_auto_sidebar id="uIm5M387lh0ylXERBBwGP7PyQjBb5NZx"] NIGHTMARES on Wax is not a horror movie, but one of the best electronica bands too many people have never heard of. A collage of dub, R&B, and trip hop, mixing recorded beats with live instruments, the British collective headed by George Evelyn is somewhere between '70s Curtis Mayfield and Massive Attack. They've covered a lot … [Read more...]
Knocked Out by The xx
Is there an equivalent of air guitar for great production? If not, what is their weird urge to turn knobs, balance tones and make a record as brilliant as this one when I play the debut by London's The xx? It's my favorite record of '09 that didn't end up on Spin's Top 40 list.While the album -- just called "xx" -- has been a huge critical hit in the UK (the NME review here), it's still undersung … [Read more...]