Lee Govatos Slightly Off-Kilter Since 1972.

Music Monday – “Flyentology” By El-P Feat. Trent Reznor.

Music Monday – “I Owe?” By J Kap.

Everything in me wants to hate this, but I just can't.

Music Monday – “Might Like You Better” By Amanda Blank.

Been crushing on Amanda a lot lately.

Music Monday – “Extraball” By Yuksek featuring Amanda Blank.

I can't get this song out of my head.

Music Monday – “Techno Jeep” By Julian Smith.

Music Monday – The Oxford American Music Issue.

Oxford American is, simply put, one of the greatest magazines of all time. Therefore, naturally, they've had a hard time staying in business. Thankfully, a few lucky changes (and a move) kept them running, and they seem to be going strong for the foreseeable future.

The star of OA's yearly cycle is the music issue. Featuring a staggering selection of songs, and music writing to go with all the selections, these issues are an excuse to stay in all day, listen, read, and re-listen. If you have any taste at all, you will discover an astonishing amount of songs in every issue that you will never stop listening to. The tenth and eleventh annual issues are still available here for ten measly bucks each (2 CDs per issue!), but older ones will cost you on eBay. Listen to "Better Not Look Down" by B.B. King (from the 2001 issue) below (click here instead, if on a non-Flash enabled phone).

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Music Monday – Northern State – Can I Keep This Pen?

Northern State say that they started as a "joke." Three albums in, no one's laughing, unless you count the smiles derived from the great sense of humor weaved into the lyrics of this New York Hip-Hop slash Indie Rock outfit. For right now, I'm going to push the Indie Rock part out of the way (Think Luscious Jackson, but not as funky. Makes sense, considering the Chuck Brody/Adrock production), and tell you that I love this all girl hip-hop (Think Beastie Boys, but girls. Makes sense, considering the Adrock/Chuck Brody production). I'm not alone. Northern State have performed with The Roots, Le Tigre, Talib Kweli, De La Soul, The Gossip, Gym Class Heroes, Tegan and Sara, and Cake. 'Nuff said. Listen to "Oooh Girl" below (click here instead, if on a non-Flash enabled phone). Available on Amazon and iTunes.

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Music Monday – Best Of Bootie 2009.

Another year, another Bootie. Bootie is a blog/international club theme night that deals exclusively in mashups. Every year since 2005, they've posted a "best of" compilation to download for free. While you'll hear a lot of songs you don't like at all, there's something on each one of them that will find a permanent home on your iPods. You can download all of them here. Listen to "Chasing Cars That Way (Backstreet Boys vs. Snow Patrol)" by Dan Mei & Marc Johnce below (click here instead, if on a non-Flash enabled phone).

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Music Monday – DJ Format (Featuring Abdominal) – Music For The Mature B-Boy.

Canadian DJ + Jewish MC = Gold. No kidding. Abdominal is one of the most creative MCs I've heard in my entire life, and certainly the most underrated. Format's fun sample-laden beats lay a fantastic foundation for the lyrics, bringing not only Abdominal along, but Chali Tuna and Akil from Jurassic 5, as well as Aspects and Fatski. Every DJ Format release is a classic, period. I picked this one because I heard it first. Listen to "The Hit Song" below, and marvel at the skills (click here instead, if on a non-Flash enabled phone). This album is out of print, so unless you're a collector willing to spend a lot of cash, avoid Amazon and head to iTunes instead.

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Music Monday – Soul-Sides.com.

I'm giving away something like 10% of my secret internet based cache of cool here, but it's the holidays, so it's ok. Soul Sides is the greatest music website I've ever come across. Ever. If you love R&B (real R&B), Soul, Funk, Hip-Hop, Jazz, or any of the other glorious gifts the black community has given us, then you will adore this site. It's the electronic Wax Poetics. You can literally kill an entire day listening to the massive array of songs available on this site. For example, there are three songs on just one post about Smokey Robinson's cover of "Get Ready." The cover, a remix of it, and a mashup using it. No matter what sub-genre you love, you're covered. Listen below (click here, here and here instead, if on a non-Flash enabled phone). Be Warned! Some content on Soul Sides is removed in as soon as ten days (for copyright reasons)! So, if you like it, make it a weekly destination, or miss out on a lot of great stuff.

Smokey Robinson and the Miracles: Get Ready - From Pocket Full of Miracles (Motown, 1970)

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Smokey Robinson and the Miracles: Get Ready (O-Dub Edit)

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Controller 7: Get Ready for the Young Folks - From 7" & 12" (Token Recluse, 2007)

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