Plastic Plates featuring Sam Sparro, “Stay in Love” [Plastic Plates]
Sam Sparro’s voice is a rare bird that only the most skilled of producers knows how to work from just a pretty canary to solid gold. New Yorker Plastic Plates does the latter, meeting the L.A.-based singer for a romantic tête-à-tête that is as electro beat-driven as it is pop hook-laden.
Andrea Oliva, “Decomposing” [DFTD]
Underground techno with a crescendo piano isn’t an everyday thing, but Andrea Oliva’s new EP on Defected imprint DFTD makes a case for why it should be. Lead track “Decomposing” buildas and adds layer onto layer for a slow, emotive creation.
KSMR, “Megalodon” [Spinnin]
Confirming this week what was widely suspected, KSHMR (aka Niles Hollowell-Dhar) stepped up to claim the credit for the previously ID-only banger named for a giant shark. As with his former outfit, The Cataracs, KSHMR know to soften the hard edges of a club track with some accessible melodies here and there without diminishing its power.
The Alexanders featuring Anna Lunoe, “Don’t Miss” [Partyfine]
Alex(ander) Metric and (Alexandre) Yuksek combine as a hottest new electro power duo in a post-“Get Lucky” world, tapping the softly-focused Lunoe to narrate this synthy stomper that hopefully is a harbinger of more divine electro to come.
Eyes Everywhere, “Off Bailey” [Fools Gold Clubhouse]
Buffalo, NY upstarts Eyes Everywhere drop a tune that sounds like it was made by people who listen to mid-’00s Diplo, late-’90s Basement Jaxx and late-’80s Nintendo games. Unafraid of laying more than one idea across its five minutes, “Off Bailey” transcends filler status by piquing interest where others ordinarily do not.