Despite the slew of new albums properly releases this past week and the additional number of anticipated records that have leaked via mp3, it’s hard not to get excited about all the high-profile items available for perusal. I haven’t really cared that much, though. I’ve been listening to these:

Sarah Goldfarb– Sweet Sensation, [Selection 3]

The lead song on the new Selection mix by Triple R, “Sweet Sensation” is exactly what you want in an opener: it’s cool, calm, collected and sets the stage properly for what promises to be a strong mix of microhouse. Oh. And it’s voiced by label head Triple R. The one thing that gets to me is the bell synth pounding out a ridiculously effective melody throughout its length. Unadorned, functional, and oddly affecting, it gets you in the right mood for the ride to come. Much like the last mix that Triple R put out of Trapez’s highlights, it’s a ride definitely worth taking.

[visit the Trapez website here, buy Trapez releases here]

Ghengis Jimmy– Sonofachippa

Ghengis Jimmy is the pseudonym of everyman James Plotkin, who is also known for his time in the early 90s grindcore scene. As you can hear, it’s not grindcore. What it is, is the most interesting hardcore track on a compilation I bought a few months ago entitled Strictly For The Hardcore. Most of the other tracks on the comp are straight-ahead gabba tinged redundancies. Plotkin, however, adds a bit of depth, surprises, and a sense that Digital Hardcore was pretty much DOA.

[read a bio of Plotkin here, buy Strictly For The Hardcore here]

Barbara Morgenstern– Aus Heiterem Himmel (Dntel Mix)

Monika isn’t one of my favorite record labels by a long shot, but Barbara Morgenstern is my favorite artist on the label by that same margin. Luckily, they’ve given her a song on the label’s newest comp, entitled Monika Force. I’ve also always felt that Dntel works best with voices, for the most part. Luckily everyone lives up to my own unreasonable expectations here and this comes off like a lost B-side for the ages.

[visit Monika’s website here, buy Monika Force here]