FM (Tensnake Remix)

Let's leave tonight.

Photo by Lina Scheynius

Question: Does it get much sexier than Junior Boys?
Answer: Not really, no.

Junior Boys played in Dallas tonight. If this was the first you've heard, the bad news is you've missed it. The better news is you're in good company because I missed it too. But even better still: It turns out that not only is their music some of the sexiest on the planet (I know I keep dropping that adjective but there's really none better), it also provides a quality studying soundtrack. So while I sit here figurative-balls deep in the philosophical history of 19th-century Europe, at least my ears are enjoying themselves. Yours will too.

Check out this old but killer Tensnake remix of FM. True to form, it's dark and broody like, with more than a dollop of sexual tension. FM is off their 2006 sophomore--and my favorite--Junior Boys album So This Is Goodbye. They've got a new album out though, and are currently on a huge world tour in support of it. Don't repeat my mistakes, be sure to see them when they come through your city; check dates here.

FM (Tensnake Remix) - Junior Boys

Comedown Sunday : Rough Patch

Photo by Jonathan Allen

I've been meaning to post this song forever, all the while somewhat expecting it to blow up as the hot new thing on the blogosphere while I was biding my time. However this hasn't happened, and today, nearly three months after its release, Rough Patch remains a criminally under-appreciated jem of an electronic slow jam. I'm trying to remedy this regrettable lack of appreciation with this post, the return of regular Comedown Sundays, and the declaration that this is definitely one of my favorite songs of 2011 thus far.

Rough Patch is by New York producer Slow Hands. Slow Hands was my least favorite Interpol song of all time (and considering Interpol was my favorite band for almost a decade I think that says a lot), whereas Slow Hands the producer is anything but a letdown. In fact, he's fantastic. Not to mention extremely attractive. Rough Patch is comprised of a number of elements that shouldn't work together--tropical steel guitars offset by haunting, deep vocal samples; percussive snaps overlaid by synthetic strings; a mournful mood propelled along by a striding 112 bpm--but end up being gloriously symbiotic. With all its contradictions, its a song equally suited for solitary reflection or intimate moments. One thing is certain: it's possibly the sexiest seven minutes you'll hear all year.

Rough Patch is available the Wolf + Lamb vs. Soul Clap DJ-Kicks compilation EP, available on !K7 here.

Rough Patch - Slow Hands