Flying Lotus, "Eyes Above"
You're Dead!, the incredible 2014 album by Flying Lotus, is a shimmering mass of fantastic ideas, with constant shifting across tracks, well-chosen guest artists, and lots of surprises across the length of the album. However, it's one of those records that really works best as an album, and not as isolated cuts, as you miss the overall context of each song if you just listen to a piece.
Ice Cube, "The First Day Of School (Intro)"
Wasn't I musing about rap skits just the other day? Yeah, I don't know either, I don't really read these things myself.
Dance Hall Crashers, "The Truth About Me"
Compare this song with the very early song we had from the Dance Hall Crashers the other day (you can find it through the tags). The band pretty quickly moved past just by-the-numbers ska, adding more rock to the sound and leaning more heavlily on the vocals carrying things. It was a good choice, as these later songs are considerably more fun to listen to.
Cavity, "I May Go"
Cavity is a band that I pretty much missed when they were active, which is a little bit of a surprise, as this seems like it would be kind of up my alley. I ended up with this record, a reissue edition of Laid Insignificant, in a grab bag from Hydra Head. It never really grabbed me that much, although it's fine to have it come up like this in shuffle. I'm probably never going to go back and really try and concentrate on this band though, let's face it.
Nine Inch Nails, "Burning Bright (Field On Fire)"
After coming back to the name Nine Inch Nails with 2013's Hesitation Marks, Trent Reznor has released a couple albums and a couple of EPs under the name. One of the most notable changes in the band is that it's not a one-man band any more, as Atticus Ross has joined the band as a full member after having collaborated with Reznor on the Social Network soundtrack. This is from the Not The Actual Events EP, which is a solid listen.