Massive Attack - Mezzanine (1998)

Departing from the sound found on Blue Lines and Protection (Massive Attack's first and second albums respectively), Mezzanine finds its home floating in darker waters. Pulsing, beating and ever-moving, the songs contained herein are very much alive in their brood. Songs like "Inertia Creeps" and "Mezzanine" are like a fog, billowing around the listener and while remaining undaunting, have got you completely surrounded without any escape in sight. Several songs from this album have been covered by other artists, like "Angel," which has been covered by both Sepultura and The Dillinger Escape Plan, and "Teardrop," which has been covered by José González, Incubus, and Elbow to name a few.

Musical Fun Fact #1: The song "Teardrop" is also famous for being the theme song to that medical show with everyone's favourite misanthropic, sarcastic Holmesian doctor.

Musical Fun Fact #2: This record was one of the first to be available for legal download in mp3 format.

For fans of: Portishead, Tricky, UNKLE

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Manitoba - Start Breaking My Heart (2001)

The debut full-length by Dan Snaith (a.k.a. Caribou), is a must-have for downtempo enthusiasts. This record houses an amalgamation consisting of glitchy effects, sparse vocals and ringing melodies that float over eccentric loops and percussion. The track "People Eating Fruit" would fit right in on Aphex Twin's 1997 release Come to Daddy. Start Breaking My Heart is ambient, yet stimulating; calm, yet effervescent; straightforward yet delightfully complex. The best thing I could compare this album to is REM sleep. The body is in its deepest level of sleep, but there's so much happening upstairs. It's most likely that your brain deserves a treat, so press play and let it bask in the glow that only this record can offer.

For fans of: Caribou, Four Tet, Dntel, Aphex Twin

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