I never can quite pin down whether Gold Panda’s music makes me feel incredibly happy or achingly sad. For me, his music is an arc of extremes; so incredibly beautiful that I fail to interpret it by any means other than emotion. I find it difficult to write about how this track makes use of footwork rhythms or that track takes inspiration from the sounds of the Far East because, well, it just feels utterly irrelevant.

Gold Panda’s new album Half Of Where You Live isn’t as much a deviation from 2010’s Lucky Shiner as it is a further immersion. Slight vocals, used sparingly, pack a punch, dragging you further down a hypnotic wormhole where visions of far-flung destinations skitter like ghosts in a dream. Maybe it’s because I keep coming back to this album in the earliest hours of the morning, when my eyes haven’t yet adjusted to the light, but I really don’t know whether to rip my heart out with an xacto blade or run the streets wide-eyed, grinning and gasping for air. It’s an album that makes you feel awake in the most wonderful, confusing way. Cloudy, with a chance of optimism.

Gold Panda’s Half of Where You Live is out now via Ghostly.

Nathan Broaddus, who records under the name Evenings, first came to my attention in 2010 with a collection of tracks titled North Dorm, which he self-released via Bandcamp. The songs were quiet, and pretty, reflective of the serene Virginia landscape in which they were recorded. This is about the time when Bandcamp hit popularity and it seemed like overnight everyone and their roommate was a budding bedroom producer with a free download link. Like a lot of what I listened to during that time, Evenings was discovered, enjoyed, then quickly forgotten.

Fast-forward to 2013, and Nathan Broaddus’ release of Yore on Friends of Friends. His analog hiss is all grown up; laundered clean, and tucked neatly between watery, introspective tones. Yore is an honest album, and this is perhaps what I like best about it. While many young artists abandon their first dabblings, it’s evident that Broaddus has spent time — a lot of time — building on the themes of his early work, and the result is a poignant album created with patience and appreciated with respect.

It’s very satisfying to see an artist you initially dismissed turn around and release something great. It’s a reminder that while we so often define ourselves — and each other — by our opinions, they are, for the most part, temporal. It feels good to be proven wrong.

Evenings’ Yore is out now via FoF Music.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I saw Andy Stott live for the first time back in October at WIRE’s Adventure’s in Modern Music festival. I left the Empty Bottle impressed and he’d hoping play again soon (longer, and on a better sound system). Well, looks like dreams do come true. Red Bull Music Academy brings Andy Stott back to Chicago this Sunday, March 10 at Lincoln Hall with a supporting lineup strong enough to be headliners on their own. Jimmy Edgar and Machinedrum appear together for the first time in Chicago as JETS joined by 100% Silk producer and RBMA Academy participant Octo Octa. The snow is melting, so there’s no excuse for sitting on the couch come Sunday night. We’re giving away a pair of guestlist spots to the first reader to email the address below. More event info here.

First reader to email CREAMED@CREAMTEAM.TV wins a pair of guestlist spots.

Rhye are two guys living in LA who make music that sounds like everything your life hasn’t turned out to be. But instead of causing you to curl up in a ball of despair, their sophisticated, swaying pop has the opposite effect. Because really there are very few people who have it all by your age. Let’s be honest, there’s very few of us who will have it all, ever. From the sultry tongue of vocalist Mike Milosh to the subdued, smooth jazz and strings instrumentation, Rhye’s debut album The Fall is a little too flawless; a pastiche of effortless luxury. Boutique hotels, gorgeous girls with messy hair, dinner parties that go all night — Rhye’s music brings to mind a certain aesthetic. And so long as you are ok with all this going in Rhye are, well, perfect. Because we all need a reason to daydream, and an excuse to update our Pinterest with yet another pic from The Sartorialist archives.

LIYL: black wood floors that your heels go click clack on, dim lights, Sade, making love not fucking, fine wine & expensive cheeses

Rhye are signed to Innovative Leisure and their debut album The Fall is out March 5.

From menacing bass to fractured house, producer and Hemlock label boss Untold refuses to be pinned to a genre (and you don’t dare call his music dubstep). Alongside Ninja Tune’s Illum Sphere and Chicago’s own Jeff Pietro, Untold takes the booth at Primary this Saturday night for monthly Sovereign. Expect anything and everything, from grime to deep house to maybe even drum & bass. It’s a don’t miss night and we’re giving away a pair of guestlist spots to the first reader to email the address below. More event info here.

First reader to email CREAMED@CREAMTEAM.TV wins a pair of guestlist spots.

There’s a rhythm to the colder months that the summer just doesn’t possess. It’s dark while you’re still sitting at your office desk and light before you even make it to bed on the weekends. You feel the need to make the most of every moment, be more calculated in your actions, ensure that you’re accomplishing…something.

San Francisco producer Dave Aju (Marc Barrite) captures the rhythm of fleeting time on his recent EP, Listen to Your Heartbeat, released in September on Matthew Herbert’s label, Accidental. Spontaneity within structure marks the EP’s three tracks, which each feature their own unique pattern of manipulation. Spanning from funky to woozy, Barrite’s vocals play off measured jazz pacing, shuffling steadily with a destination in mind.

Stream Dave Aju’s Listen to Your Heartbeat EP via SoundCloud or purchase digitally via iTunes.