Wrapped in plastic.
Girl Ray - Give Me Your Love (Version Française - Edit)
Came across this on the Rough Trade Shops Counter Culture 2022 comp, which I bought for £3 in the Bristol branch of that shop. One of the few CDs in there like. I can't be dropping £40 on a record, mate. Anyway, I don't know much about Girl Ray but Give Me Your Love has a nice Hot Chip feel to it.
Jeff Parker - Super Rich Kids
Jeff Parker got a mention in the new newsletter from NTS DJ Macca, whose One Glove show on Saturday mornings is always a good listen like. His newsletter is pretty good too. As is this sparse instrumental cover of the Frank Ocean banger. Think I read somewhere that Jeff Parker is in Tortoise.
Modern English - Gathering Dust
Scratchy driving thriving post-punk from 1981. My bread and butter.
Antipop Consortium - Bubblz
Future-facing hip-hop from 2002. I used to have Arrhythmia, the album this is off, but I've not a clue what happened to it. Great story, Sam.
Crystal Castles - Not In Love ft. Robert Smith of The Cure
Yeah, I know it's not on to post Crystal Castles in 2025. But it does bang. 36m views on YouTube too. So I'm not the only one.
Rustie - Raptor
I used to have this as my wake-up alarm when it came out in 2014. I can only now listen to it again.
Un-cut - Midnight
Liquid D'n'B at its most pop-focused, but what a roller.
Fred Everything and Stereo MCs - Soul Love (Clive From Accounts Remix)
Bit like The Streets and I'm up for a UKG revival this summer. Not to be confused with Fred Again or Colin from Accounts.
Capone - Music Love Song
Incredible, and I mean incredible cosmic disco from 1979 with this mad distorted guitar. Straight on my best things I heard this year list.
Original image: NASA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons