Archive: Week of Jan 8 - Jan 14, 2026
Week of Jan 8 - Jan 14, 2026
Basically the quiet sequel to Below the Heavens that most people slept on hard. Exile's beats feel warmer and more lived-in here, and Blu sounds more settled in his own skin — track like 'Spread' just hits every time. If you loved that first one, this one rewards just as much.
Oddisee basically made a political album without it ever feeling preachy, which is hard to pull off. The live band production on cuts like 'Like Really' gives it this rolling, urgent feel that most rap records lack. Sharp writing, no filler, criminally underseen.
Fashawn and Exile again but stripped down and more personal than Boy Meets World — you can hear the Fresno heat in every bar. 'Miles Davis' is one of the cleanest rap songs of that whole decade and nobody was talking about it. This one deserved so much more.
Sean Price at peak gruff-mode — every bar feels like a headlock and the production matches that roughneck energy perfectly. 'Kimbo Price' goes crazy and the skits actually add to the character instead of killing the momentum. Brownsville rap at its hardest.
Kieran Hebden basically found the emotional center of club music on this one. 'Love Cry' is pure euphoria, and 'She Just Likes to Fight' has this tense, beautiful pulse that stays with you for days. It sits somewhere between dance floor and bedroom perfectly.
This record sounds like someone fed early jungle and Detroit techno into a dream and let it run. 'Airglow Fires' alone is worth your whole week — the textures are lush but it never loses the groove. One of the best UK electronic albums of that decade, barely talked about.
Rod Modell doing what he does best — deep, slow, rippling dub techno that feels like being underwater in the best way. Tracks like 'Drift' just dissolve time. Perfect late night headphone record, no tracks outstay their welcome.
Kaidi just keeps releasing these warm, sprawling jazz-funk workouts that somehow fly under the radar every time. 'So Good' and 'Love What You Do' both hit that sweet spot between soul jazz and broken beat. It sounds like a Sunday afternoon that refuses to end.
Hubbard absolutely tears through the title track — it's like 37 minutes long and never loses intensity for a second. The band includes Herbie Hancock and Joe Henderson so the supporting cast alone makes it unmissable. Less talked about than Red Clay but honestly just as essential.
Weldon Irvine is one of those names that DJs know but most listeners have never heard and it's a real shame. This one mixes spiritual jazz, funk and afro rhythms in a way that still sounds fresh — 'We Gettin' Down' is a genuine floor-burner. Total gem from the Black Arts Movement era.
This is Southern soul at its most raw and real — Hamilton's voice is enormous and he uses every bit of it. 'Charlene' and the title track are the kind of songs that hit you in the chest without warning. Weirdly overlooked given how consistent the whole record is.
Missy Elliott executive produced this and somehow it still got buried — which says a lot about how the industry treated women in R&B. 'Oops (Oh My)' got some radio play but the rest of the album is just as good, especially 'Boogie 2nite'. It's intimate and confident in a way most R&B wasn't at the time.