Ben becomes interested in music again: Take Five

Clams Casino - Motivation - You seemed to think the production was aiight on that Lil B track, but you hated the rapping.  Well here’s the best of both worlds!  A killer instrumental by Clams Casino with Lil B’s rapping removed!  This is the first track on CC’s instrumental mixtape, which is strong from front to back.

Rocky Votolato and Matt Pond PA cover The Human League

Matt Pond PA and Rocky Votolato - Don’t You Want Me (Human League Cover) - This one has ‘cheap novelty’ written all over it, but by the time you get to the second verse, you realize that this song is actually quite brilliant.  The instrumentation here is subtle and stirring, and the two voices co-exist perfectly together.  I’ve revisited this many times since seeing the guys do a co-headlining set back in the spring.

James Blake - The Wilhelm Scream - I’ve come back more often to the live in-studio version of this one than the album version.  That guitar line probably has something to do with it.  If you’re looking for a direct, beautiful voice — here’s one.