Hiatus Kaiyote - The World It Softly Lulls

I first became acquainted with this band randomly, through some artist channel on Spotify. The song I heard was Nakamarra (featuring Q-tip) and it reminded me of an even groovier Brand New Heavies. I love that kind of stuff. They clearly have jazz-trained roots, and chops galore.

Further investigation uprooted this song, which I could listen to on a loop forever, I think. It's almost a journey in how it moves through it's completely transformative progressions. None of them are particularly jarring, even though the loop sometimes feels like a tone arm that can't stay situated on warped wax. That's not by accident, either - they're stretching a groove until it flaps, then bringing the whole shebang back into the pocket nicely.

Just when I fear for the state of music, a band comes along that reminds me that people still do practice every day and care about every single note they play. It's heartening.
Please grab a cup of warm whatever and enjoy Hiatus Kaiyote:

As Tall As Lions - You Can't Take It With You

Here's a group I've never heard of before, which verifies that I've lost my grip on what's out there. This song has a nice groove, with a killer little hitch in the drum beat. Subtle as all get out, but it gives a decent song a real personality. Listen for the part that sounds like it's dragging in the verse. Switching times or patterns is not hard, but changing the entire feel of the song - but only for a fill, and without derailing the song - that's impressive.

The Shins - Sea Legs

I've always wondered if there are just a few natural tempos that work for pop songs. I know there are chords that are used over and over again in pop music - undoubtedly because there's just something physiologically appealing to them. This song has a lilting tempo and feel that Beck made a living with, but it has as much in common with a vintage Bowie tune as well. I've always liked the Shins, but I think I love this song:

Gary Numan - Down in the Park

This is a great song, and the video below is the best performance of it. I've heard a number of versions of it from different eras, but always preferred this one. Then, I saw the actual film footage and now there's no debate on any level. From the concert Urgh: A Music War!, the stage and props are spectacular and put the perfect atmosphere around a dark and moody groove.

Beak> - Mono

Beak> is an offshoot of Portishead, one of my favorite bands. This video was procured by a fan and applied to this particular song because “the track worked in almost perfect unison”. I would concur. Here’s the video:
Beak> - Mono from Rich Davison on Vimeo.
And more info on Portishead and Beak> here: http://www.portishead.co.uk/home/