Humanoid 'Stakker Humanoid' (Westside, 1988)

Frantic, acid-infected electro classic.

This pre-Future Sound of London track by Brian Dougans is a storming cascade of beats, acid squelching, whistles, sound fx and driving energy.

Arriving on a distinctive, puttering riff, it somehow seems to arrive a full-pelt but still ratchet up the intensity the course of five incredible minutes.

I spent ages trying to track down a copy of the original 12" after mistakenly buying one of the many, inferior, remixes.

'Stakker Humanoid' is simply a classic British dance record that sits alongside FSOL's 'Papua New Guinea', 'LFO' by LFO, Bomb The Bass's 'Beat Dis', 'IOU' by Freeez and all the other records I loved before I was ready to leave the bedroom for the dancefloor...

Download Humanoid 'Stakker Humanoid' (mp3) (Mediafire)

Parlour 'Over The Under' (Temporary Residence, 2002)

More angular-but-melodic postrock grooviness from the Temporary Residence stable.

This band are only a recent find for me, despite being wise to Temporary Residence's excellent taste for a good few years now.

Parlour deal in a Ganger-esque mix of lock-groove repetition with melodic trimmings. Warm, resonant bass brings to mind the first Tortoise album and the break-beat, boxy drum figures are channelling Can's Jaki Liebzeit, but the combination of elements and adroit guitar work and production touches make Parlour very much an original.

The seven minutes of gently evolving Kraut-y, rolling Post Rock of 'Over The Under' come from their second album 'Googler' which is highly recommended as point-of-entry into this band.

Download Parlour 'Over The Under' (alternative postrock mp3) (TemporaryResidence.com)

New Music - Fall Creek Boys Choir (Bon Iver, James Blake) (2011)

On reflection, an obvious collaboration. The result, sweet Bon Iver vocals with lashings of sub-bass.

Meandering, gentle sweetness from the autotuned vocals of Bon Iver's Justin Vernon plus James Blake with stately piano and a metronomic patter. What sounds like the 'woof' sound on a cheap keyboard also makes an appearance. About time someone put that on a record.

The vocals and autotuned harmonies multiply, pitched against the pulses of sub-bass and eventually a proper martial drumbeat.

Overall, it's just what you'd expect from a collaboration between these two, but it's very good nonetheless.

Morphine 'The Night' (Rykodisc, 2000)

Deep, brown moodcore from Morphine's last album.

Morphine dealt in a rich, jazz-infused, bluesy take on alt/postrock, anchored around the late Mark Sandman's langorous bass. A powerful, sodium-street-light-lit trio, they remind me of the wonderful Breed.

'The Night' is the title track from their final album, released after the death of singer Mark Sandman. It's a gorgeous, moody voyage through a fog of see-sawing strings, pattering drums and deep, dark bass.

Morphine used a limited palette to great effect and a great band with acres to explore. This is a great place to start.

Download Morphine 'The Night' (alternative, indie mp3 download) (Mediafire)

Breeders 'Grunggae (Cannonball Demo)' (4AD, 1994)

Early demo of 'Cannonball'. Class stuff.

Not sure if I've thought that 'Cannonball' sounded like Grunge-Reggae like Kim Deal obviously did. However, it's a mighty fine tune, certain to bring the roof down at indie discos wherever it's played. Not that I'm advocating tragic loss of indie life.

By the time of the second Breeders album, the angular, noisy, sinsister atmosphere of 'Pod' had been excised and Tanya Donnelly had moved on to form Belly. 'Last Splash' is a more straightforward alt rock album, with a much more summery disposition, and this shows in this version of a classic as a work in progress.

Download Breeders 'Grunggae (Cannonball demo)' (alternative indie mp3) (Mediafire)