Mike Ladd - Nostalgialator

Although Nostalgialator was originally released in 2004 (on Germany's !K7 Records), most people outside Europe didn't have much of a chance to listen to it. Luckily, North American fans of Mike Ladd and exuberant left-field production who haven't had time to spend hours scouring the imports have a chance to hear the album thanks to indie hip-hop powerhouse Def Jux, which reissued it in early 2008. Those looking for the musician's sparser, softer work will have to be content with compromise, because Nostalgialator -- described by Ladd as "manufactured by a corporation in order to make our lives bearable" -- is as much crunchy basslines as it is avant jazz keyboard reflections (the latter courtesy, for the most part, of Vijay Iyer, with whom Ladd has collaborated multiple times). Read More