Sound Obsession

In alphabetical order. . . . The Arcs: Yours, Dreamily, (6.5/10) Dan Auerbach, front-man of blues rock duo The Black Keys, temporarily ditched his longtime drummer pal Patrick Carney and launched a new collaborative side-project last year - The Arcs. The band's debut Yours, Dreamly, bests the Keys' recent material, exploring more soulful textures. It doesn't all work, but its lush slow jams and vintage aesthetic make the journey worthwhile. Artificial Intelligence: Timeline (7/10) North London drum & bass duo Artificial Intelligence released their second LP, Timeline , last year - their first for revered label Metalheadz. Timeline shifts easily between sunny liquid rollers and dank breakbeat workouts and though it doesn't shatter many molds stylistically, the album is superbly consistent and stirring from start to finish. Easily one of Metalheadz's best artist albums since Goldie's Timeless . The Atomic Bitchwax: Gravit...

I've said it before and I'll say it again - 2013 was an epic year in music and the finest in recent memory.  Those who know me best won't be surprised by my top pick, but the rest of my list might be unexpected.  In 2013, after years of bashful flirtation, I dove headlong into "metal" without pause or irony.  There was an abundance of excellent metal albums this year - many recorded and produced by an always rock-solid Kurt Ballou (of hardcore punk heroes Converge, and proprietor of GodCity Studio in Salem, Massachusetts).  Otherwise, 2013 continued a trend of "retro" with contemporary artists continuing to referencing the sounds of the 70's, 80's and 90's - even some former heroes from those decades made solid comebacks.  These are my favorite albums of the year.*  Enjoy. . . .                1.  Queens of the Stone Age: ...Like Clockwork (9/10) "Risk nothing, get nothing" claimed   Queens of t...

Disclosure, T. Williams Date:  October 28, 2013 Venue:  930 Club, Washington, DC As a former rave/club kid and DJ, now in his mid-thirties with a respectable office gig, I can say it's a glorious thing when a dance/electronic act starts and finishes before midnight.  For that alone, I salute Disclosure and opening DJ, T. Williams, who played a sold-out show at the 930 Club last night.  For those unaware, Disclosure are a UK house music production duo (specializing in the "garage," "funky," and "deep" varieties), while T. Williams, also from the UK, has DJ'd these styles for a decade plus (notably, for influential UK radio station Rinse FM).  Disclosure "face" the music. T. Williams was already well into his set when we arrived at the venue, enveloping the sweaty crowd in concussive 4/4 house rhythms.  I was immediately taken back to my early days at Buzz (the infamous 1990's rave night held at the...