Alicia Keys Sounds Great and Terrible at the Same Time

1. Alicia Keys, “Like You’ll Never See Me Again”
Alicia Keys channels the oddball minimalism of Prince on this slightly off-kilter slow jam from her new record, but still ends up sounding a bit like Mariah Carey once the back-up singers come in. [Pretty Much Amazing]

2. Interpol “Pioneer to the Falls (Orchestral Version)”
This grandiose, cinematic remix reveals this number from Interpol’s latest to be a pretty terrific song so long as you eliminate everything from the original version aside from the vocals. [Sous le Pave, la Plage]

3. Burial “Archangel”
This cut from the mysterious dubstep artist Burial’s new Pitchfork-approved album sounds kinda like a scratched Jamiroquai CD getting played in a wind tunnel, which turns out to be a fairly pleasurable thing. [Rock Sellout]

4. Le Loup, “We Are Gods! We Are Wolves!”
After a billion and a half indie bands with the word “wolf” in their name, it’s hard to come at a song with this title with an open mind, but this dreamy, slow-building tune is endearing enough to forgive this octet from Washington, D.C. for their lupine transgressions. Hey, at least they aren’t called Le Wolf. [Said the Gramophone]

5. Bollywood Brass Band, “Ishq Bina Ishq Bina”
This majestic yet extraordinarily funky track is the work of a ten-piece ensemble specializing in reworking old tunes from Bollywood flicks and Punjabi wedding songs. We’re not sure whether or not the weird growling at the end is part of a traditional arrangement. [Soulrocket]
—Matthew Perpetua