Blue Sky Black Death

Add Date: April 19 

Artist: Blue Sky Black Death 

Album: Noir 

Label: Fake Four Inc. 

Genre: Electronica, ambient 

Comments: The duo Blue Sky Black Death, comprised of Young God and Kingston, have a pretty impressive resume, mostly from their success as hip-hop producers: they've worked with the likes of Guru, Del the Funky Homosapien, Jedi Mind Tricks and members of the Wu-Tang Clan, among others. Their most recent release, last fall's Third Party, saw a different kind of collaboration, as Alexander Chen (Boy in Static/The Consulate General) provided vocals and co-wrote many of those electropop-leaning tunes.

Chen makes a cameo on Noir, playing viola on three tracks and singing on "Fire for Light", but this LP focuses on the producers' expert work in many different styles: there's ambient techno and electronica, left-field hip hop, even some trip hop. Regardless of the style, it's all beautifully done. Try 3, 2 and 10.