Marnie, “Lost Maps”
For Ladytron fans, it’s been a long wait. Gravity The Seducer came out all the way back in 2011, and nothing from the band has given much reassurance in the intervening years, to the point that some have wondered if the group is even still together. (It is, officially.) But in the meantime there is the excellent solo work of its lead singer, Helen Marnie, who has filled the interim with her own projects like 2013’s Crystal World, which explored a more dream-pop sound than her icy day job. With the upcoming Strange Words And Weird Wars, Marnie is more in the comfort zone of ’80s-inspired electro-pop, as smooth and compelling as anything Ladytron has ever done, with the added benefit of a bit more range and expressiveness in her vocals. “Lost Maps” captures the vibe of retro Euro-cool with an efficiency that puts 95 percent of the current crop of similarly inclined artists to shame. There’s a lot of people trying to make this kind of music at the moment, but Marnie’s inspired work is a reminder that few of them can do it so well.
Roc Marciano, “Marksmen”
Roc Marciano’s long-awaited fourth record, Rosebudd’s Revenge, was released quietly this February, and it’s the sort of rap long-player that discreetly builds in your system like a carbon monoxide leak. The Long Island emcee bounced around major labels early in his career before making a name for himself with 2010’s Marcberg as a film-noir sonic stylist and a writer capable of both Rick Ross opulence and GZA third-eye wisdom. Rosebudd’s Revenge is a master class in sustained mood, but the mid-album highlight is “Marksmen,” Marciano’s collaboration with fellow wandering shogun assassin Ka. It’s all windswept, postapocalyptic myth-making from Ka (“Just wasn’t the sharpest tool, paid for my trespasses / A modest student got saluted when I met masters”) before Roc comes in with characteristically impressionistic bars like, “Push keys no piano lessons / Ambidextrous.” Animoss’ beat is as good a Marciano impression as you’ll find—a minimal, mournful swirl of psychedelic guitars. It’s a collaboration between two ancient-seeming, almost elemental talents, a standout on an album designed to lurk quietly in the shadows.