Planning to RockHave it AllChicks on Speed

Planning to Rock is the one-woman band of Janine Rostron, a Berlin-based singer/producer/VJ, and her debut, Have it All takes Vaudevillian theater–or maybe just theatrics–to crazy new levels in indie- and electro-pop. Don’t let the cutesy ‘The PTR Show’ intro fool you–this is some dope shit.

Ezekiel HonigScattered PracticesMicrocosm

New York City’s Ezekiel Honig knows the virtue of keeping songs somber and subtle. Us XLR8R folks have praised Ezekiel’s dark work for years now and Scattered Practices gets equal applause. Our man has officially mastered his mellow, MBV-ish minimal techno vision in six simple tracks. This is the ideal album for the upcoming autumn season.

Basement JaxxCrazy Itch RadioXL

There’s no surprise that Basement Jaxx has sold hundreds of thousands of records, simply because they know how to create ridiculously poppy jams. Crazy Itch Radio is no exception, blending styles that range from grime to gypsy beats to their patent-pending genre, banjo-house. Their newest full-length has the type of well-produced soul that’ll have everyone from Beyoncé to Jamie Lidell feeling a little threatened.

VariousTales Of The Unexpected: Chapter 2Platipus

There’s dance music and then there’s Tales of the Unexpected: Chapter 2. With unreleased tracks from the likes of Nathan Fake, The Orb, and Booka Shade, this eclectic mix streams through a multitude of genres, all the while consistently keeping us locked in a captivating techno free-for-all.

Solillaquists Of SoundAs If We Existed-anti

Discovered by art-hopper Sage Francis, SOS is a full-on socially conscious hip-hop enterprise set to change the world. While a bit preachy at times, the innovative beats and acoustic guitar hooks have got us, well, hooked. Activists everywhere will be thrilled to hear Epitaph’s -anti sub-imprint keeping stride with their patented thought-provoking hip-hop.

John ClarkeRootsy Reggae/Visions of John ClarkeWackie’s

Originally released in 1979 by Bullwackies, this collection containing remixed, re-mastered, and reworked material is definitive roots reggae at its most authentic. Led by twanging guitars and passionate vocals, songs like ‘Shack Up With Me’ and ‘Babylon Spanking’ have got us screaming “One Love!’

Beeda WeedaTurfology 101Clear Label

Beeda Weeda provides the next glimpse into the hyphy movement that’s got kids from Oakland to Oklahoma City ghost riding and causing trouble. Complete with staggering bass quakes and a full-on ‘turfology’ tutorial, Beeda’s new record could be the soundtrack to this weekend’s rage fest.

VariousBelly Of The Whale: Digital Music Made From the Sounds of Marine Animals Important

Featuring some of electronic music’s most prized composers, this compilation features a series of tracks utilizing sounds of marine animals of all sorts–from lobsters to beluga whales to dolphins. With noisy works from the likes of Merzbow, Jim Nollman, and David Rothenberg, you’ll come to rejoice in the eerie beauty of sub-aquatic communication. Stellar.

Chris Herbert Mezzotint Kranky

Kranky’s done it again with another glitchy and droney full-length from newcomer Chris Herbert. Mezzontint is a spontaneously bubbly, textured suite–the future most certainly looks bright for Birmingham, UK’s next ambient practitioner.

Shadow Huntaz Instrumentals Skam

Somewhere in between Aphex Twin and Anticon comes experimental hip-hop veterans, the Shadow Huntaz. On this offering from Skam, the boys have returned with a two-disc instrumental tweaking of their well-received albums Currupt Data and Valley of the Shadow. Not necessarily the most cheerful of instrumentals, these blackened beats have got us praising the underworld and its accompanying chaos.