elvis presley - 'such a night'

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My children have just gone to bed a little bit bemused and embarrassed as their dad danced around the living room to this song....and not missing a single inflection as he sang along, I hasten to add. This is one of my very favourite Elvis tunes too. 

mexican institute of sound - 'escribeme pronto'

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Have I played this before? Ah well, if I have then it hasn't been for a long time. I'm in the mood for some Latin-infused breaks and beats. Saturday morning music!

hiroshi and kudo featuring dj milo - 'return of the original art form'

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Still my all time favourite hip-hop record. 

darker than blue - 'ghetto funk'

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You know when a track just hits that sweet spot? 

tiffany - 'panic'

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Not just a collector's piece but actually a pretty interesting reworking of the Smiths song by none other than Tiffany....yes, that Tiffany. It sounds to me like a Depeche Mode backed track that Ridley Scott might use. I like it.

thievery corporation - 'vampires (afrolicious and rob garza remix)'

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Ahead of the release of his remixes album Rob Garza from Thievery Corporation has made available as download this funky little number. It's retained the North African soul of the tune but freshened it up and given it a new set of clothes. You can read more and download the track here.

bonobo -'cirrus'

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The awful, numb feeling after losing to Crystal Palace yesterday has made any attempts at listening to upbeat music futile. I think the key word here is down-tempo and this is what the new Bonobo album delivers by the bucket-load  It's quite ethereal and suits the mood perfectly.

leftside wobble - 'acid soul 10 mix'

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I was sent this by a friend and it could possibly be the best dance mix I've heard in years. Leftside Wobble is one half of Coldcut so this comes with a lot of pedigree and a guarantee of quality. That first track especially....it will have its own entry here soon, it is that good.

saint saviour - 'tightrope (all saints basement sessions)'

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I'm going to keep waxing lyrical about Saint Saviour until she achieves the rewards that she deserves. This will blow you away - it sounds like the best James Bond theme never made.

jackie opel - 'pictures of smoke'

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This is very apt right now in my house. I'm just preparing the Sunday roast in the kitchen but we've got the shisha pipe going and the air is full of apple tobacco smoke. This tune is a ska classic from right back to the beginning of the genre in the early 60s. What a tune.

owiny sigoma band - 'magret aloor'

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I have a serious contender for my album of the year. It's a superb work of art from the first right through to the last track. Best described (by me at least) as Kenyan 'Owiny' music meets psychedelic funk with a splash of techno. This is just one of the tracks but oh my goodness, just how good is this? Seriously....how good is this? Genius.

sweet tee - 'i got that feeling'

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I love the breaks in this very old school hip-hop classic. 24 years old and still as fresh as a daisy with a stripped back feel and samples to die for.

probably the most extreme music video you'll ever watch (NSFW)

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This video is very clever but it's not for the faint-hearted. Think 'Smack My Bitch Up' but more so. Needless to say it's not suitable for children, for watching at work or for the squeamish. 

hidden orchestra - 'spoken'

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I tried and failed to get my head around the Scott Walker albumwhilst wanderin around Poplar on my lunch break. I think I need to sit down with the lyrics in front of me and follow along with the songs. It's not the type of album you can zone out to with headphones on. The Hidden Orchestra however are made for the job and I've been enjoying their 'Archipelago' album for the past hour. The arrangements are lush, evocative and soaring as this track shows.

the xx - 'reunion'

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It must be something in the water...or maybe I'm just taking more effort when listening to music but XX's 'Coexist' album has been the soundtrack to my daily commute for a few days now and I've discovered all sorts of things hidden away within the album that I missed when first listening. If I carry on like this with my re-appraisal of 'difficult' recent releases I might just be ready soon to tackle Scott Walker's 'Bish Bosch', an album that has so far remained impenetrable to me.