The lastest wave of big electronica albums out, namely, Basement Jaxx's 'Scars', Simian Mobile's 'Temporary Pleasure', and AIR's upcoming 'Love 2' album have left me... curiously dissapointed. It maybe points to a larger theme in music production values these days and what we can expect from well-established artists. Well loved in their genre, these artists, to me, do one thing best: create a mood. A driving force of a beat for the dance floor, or a sweeping and melancholy melody, on past albums from these bands, I have been moved to the repeat button, on repeat. But this latest output of their creative efforts makes me wonder if it's the kind of thing where artists have their peak for one or two albums (in the case of Air, for me, more like 4 or 5) and then... things get strained. Maybe it's the expectations to be as great as their last recording, and they try to hard. maybe it's trying to appease too many people in the industry. The main problem seems to be wayyy too much going on-- beats, melodies, and collaborations... it gets messy. Basement Jaxx and Simian Mobile Disco (the latter especially) lose their own sound in an effort to sound fresh and all hooked up to the scene. Folk singers don't seem to have this issue; Jack Johnson's albums could be strung together into one big continuous album and no one would distinguish one from the other! Okay, that's a little exteme, but maybe you get my point. Bottom line: please, electonica greats, stop trying to reinvent yourself and be something you're not.I know it's all in vogue to mix jazz and rasta with hip hop and electonica, but we need to calm the eff down and just stick to an artistic concept that's less schitzo.

That said, the tracks that sit best in my eardrums are:

Scars: Raindrops

It's so poppy! I really like the lyrics in the cheesiest of ways. It's got a lot of movement and dynamics to the sound-- I like that the opening bit doesn't make it too obvious what's to come. It's a new classic feel-good groove.

Temporary Pleasure: Cruel Intentions

... Beth Ditto's voice really shines, and I'm hoping for some sick remixes of this track beyond the Joker remix that everyone's blogging about. I mean, yeah, it's fine, but I see much more potential for manipulating her voice and the synth behind her.

Love 2: Do The Joy

Sounds like a marriage of sounds from Talkie Walkie and 10000 Mz. I really love their signature keychanges in their distinctive eerie synth style. The words are weird in the way that AIR makes nonsense chic and cute all at once. Yet this track doesn't totally satiate my AIR craving... I really hope there's some less popular tracks on their new album that really blow me away.

Maybe I'm speaking too soon about the AIR album... but the tracks I've heard can't compare to their classic "Cherry Blossom Girl" or "Don't Be Light". Sometimes being a hardcore fan puts too much pressure on them to create something with again the most perfect sound you can imagine... if it's so perfect, can it be topped? Same with Simian Mobile. "Sleep Deprivation" still gives me chills with how raw and pulsing it is. Ironically, their new album has put me to sleep!