For Your Ear Hole: Oh No - Dr. No's Oxperiment

Dr. No's Oxperiment is the latest in Stones Throw's nearly flawless line of instrumental releases and clearly cements Oh No's position alongside his brother Madlib and the dearly departed J Dilla as one of today's hottest beatsmiths. No uses a recipe of MPC2000 and finely chopped Middle Eastern samples to bake this flavorful platter of aural appetizers. The satisfying blend of Mediterranean funk goes down smooth and quick as not a single track is allowed to test your attention span, each one clocking under two minutes. Fans of the Chrome Children compilations will find Heavy's guitar sample familiar as it blasts open the album and you'll be hard pressed not to twist your pelvis to the delicious bass line of Exp Out The Ox. Other highlights include the dirty spy theme, My Luck and the Temple of Doom-ish Ohhhhhh. Every cut on Dr. No's is a seamless blend of banging beats and spicy world soul and proves that this other Michael Jackson is far more than the Beat Konducta's brother. (A+)

For Your Ear Hole: Talib Kweli - Ear Drum

While it certainly doesn't touch Black Star, Reflection Eternal, or Quality, Ear Drum is a welcome return to form for Talib Kweli after his underwhelming Beautiful Struggle. It stumbles a couple times, mostly thanks to will.i.am and Justin Timberlake on Say Something and The Nature respectively, but has an equal amount of highlights. Madlib's trio of tracks infuse the album with nostalgic soul, including Soon the New Day, which features a warm and sultry hook by Norah Jones. Pete Rock twists an Elton John sample into the hard hitting Holy Moly and the flute laced Listen!!! by Kwame is certainly the most movement inducing track. The requisite Kanye West appearance will get you In the Mood with its laid back groove and Kweli and KRS-One rip apart Bob Marley's Do It Twice on The Perfect Beat. While it seems Talib can't quite stay away from trying to drift in the mainstream, Ear Drum should still keep the backpack fans happy. It's not overflowing with bangers and head nodders, but it is a smooth listen with only a couple necessary skips. (B)

Ear Candy

Madlib + Badu = hot fire (mp3)