Kid Creole

Going Places: The August Darnell Years 1974-1983 (Strut)

Thomas Browder, a.k.a. August Darnell, and later known as Kid Creole, somehow felt that joining swing and big-band music with disco was a good idea in the late ’70s. Dr. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band was a primary vehicle for Darnell’s idiosyncratic vision. Darnell’s dapper, zoot-suit persona might have fooled some, but the proof is on this survey of ten years of his productions. The unusual instrumentation, kooky lyrics and ace drumming (often from Jamaican skinsman Winston Grennan) have made Darnell creations like “Sunshower” some of the most sampled in hip-hop. Others, like “I’m an Indian Too” are utterly silly—but key pieces of a pretty odd puzzle.

Cut Copy

In Ghost Colours (Modular)

This Australian indie-guitar group stole the Anglo electronic pop sound of the ’80s and stretched it out on its driving, sleek, but icy debut Bright Like Neon Love. Its highly drooled over follow-up finds the band more tuned-in to a clubber’s needs but also more emotive— “Hearts on Fire,” “Nobody Lost, Nobody Found” and “Lights and Music” are each built on a funk-dance platform for an indie-leaning DJ set. But the band also steers its feathery songwriting toward the anthemic with noise-pop gem “Unforgettable Season” and the breathy “Strangers in the Wind.” There’s passion behind a fashionably struck pose.

Robert Owens

Night-time Stories (Compost Records)

Famed for his work in Larry Heard’s Fingers, Inc. back in the ’80s, Robert Owens remains one of house music’s best-loved voices, even if his output since the ’90s has been minimal. After appearing on Coldcut’s own comeback opus Sound Mirrors, his voice is sought-after once again. On this solo long player, Owens teams up with various skilled producers on each track for a range of moods. Highlights such as Jimpster’s “Inside My World” and Kid Massive’s “Only Me” pit Owen’s gospel ecstasy against the latest in techy bounce.

The YMD

Excuse Me, This is the Yah Mos Def (My Pal God Records)

Philly duo of Distro and B. Awesome spent much of the ’90s nestled deep in the underground punk scene, and they’re here to rap all about it. They drop rhymes about Kevin Seconds and Drive Like Jehu plus lots of New Jersey bands you’ve never heard. The YMD recalls the early Beastie Boys, but more noteworthy is its choice of samples, such as clipped beats of Minor Threat, Bikini Kill and Native Nod.