Part restrained disco, part oddly Fleetwood Mac-ish (hey now – wait till the female vocals come in), Shiny Toy Guns won’t have you Fading Listening (except, of course, if you’re faded while you’re listening – but that’s another set of circumstances for a different time). Moving along… if you haven’t noticed yet, I have a massive thing for the xx - this Take It Easy Hospital rework of Angels takes things to the next level without losing the authenticity of the original track.  Completely losing the original track, the Cyril Hahn take on Losing You by Beyonce’s lil sis Solange is pretty out there – if by “out there” you get that I freakin lurve it.

Other highlights include the oh-so-dancey Good For You by Icona Pop and DVNO,  a rager crafted by Justice then refined by Kids at the Bar.  Closing things out, the completely sex-i-fied Something About Us by none other than Daft Punk will have you forgetting political lines and seeing… well, stars.  Rock the vote, then rock out, kids.

Want on the mailing list to get the full downloadable playlists?  Leave a comment or shoot me an email to Rhea Recommends at gmail dot com.

Over and out.

Swedish trio Niki and the Dove‘s 2010 track Mother Protect gets the Goldroom treatment; the resulting mix is a small synth-pop celebration that’s perfect for shaking the goods.  On the other end of the spectrum, one of my favorite bands, Tame Impala returned to the studio to create their sophomore album, “Lonerism” – introspective and psychedelic songs like Mind Mischief are sure to continue growing a fan base for the Aussie band.   Tickets for NY shows sold out large venues in a day (I snagged a pair for the Webster Hall show this November back in August) – keep an eye out for upcoming show announcements.  The latest track I’m getting all emo over?  True Romance is a giddy electronic chronicle of young love whose sound inspiration was allegedly “Kanye West producing an Arcade Fire song” according to Citizens!, the five-member all-male band behind the track.  Whatever that means, this Gigmesh remix nails it.  If you’re as big a fan of Chad Valley as I am, give a listen to Tell All Your Friends and I’m sure you’ll do just that.  Head’s up; he’s opening the Windish Agency’s CMJ Showcase at Brooklyn Bowl on Friday, Oct. 19th – snag tickets and party with the cool kids (including yours truly).  Rounding things out with a dark finale, First Aid Kit relies on haunting vocals doctored to produce the perfect chilling sensation, reminding you that though it’s still Autumn, Winter Is All Over You.

Friends: enjoy the listen and expect the full Rhea Recommends: She’s So Emo playlist, coming to an inbox near you soon.

CHVRCHES – The Mother We Share – Bubble gum synth pop, and that’s fine by me.  This Glasgow-hailing trio is buzzing right now – they’ll be touring with Passion Pit this Fall; I can only hope they’ll hit the US. hard.

Escort – Cocaine Blues - BK-based contemporary disco that’s catchy as hell.  Apparently their live sets feature a 17-piece line-up.  October 27th at Webster Hall. Color me interested.

Sky Ferreira – Everything is Embarrassing -  US singer-songwriter-model-actress-whatever, this chick’s got chops.

Lana Del Ray – Backfire- Sure, she’s awkward as F live, but with the catalog of hauntingly sensual tracks she’s amassed over the past year, I’ll give her a pass for the whole SNL blunder.  This one doesn’t disappoint.

Jamie xx – Rolling in the Deep (feat. Childish Gambino)- The boys managed to sneak their way into this one by piggy-backing re-inventing this not-just-quite played-out Adele mega hit.  Love Childish Gambino’s feature and if this is your first encounter with the solo work of the xx’s Jamie Smith, you owe yourself a good catchup session.

Till next time – RR signing out.

Please don’t mistake me – I’m not trying to claim discovery of this palace of swank (after 11pm on weekend evenings, you’re in for a scene at the door) – I’m merely baffled that dinner has yet to take on a larger following.  Wine and cocktails, like the mapped-out namesake Ludlow (gin + mint = up my alley) are on happy hour at the bar till 9pm week nights – definitely grab a stool for a pre-dinner libation.  Once you’re seated, try starting with a Mediterranean dip trio for the table; we dipped six grain and herbed lavash in roasted garlic hummus, cucumber with mint tzatziki and eggplant caviar (a personal fave).  During appetizer round, we opted for the tomato and (oh so creamy) mozzarella salad, which was good, but not a show stopper.  The refreshing watermelon salad with pine nuts, fresh mint and ricotta salata turned out to be a much better call, as far as different flavors go.

I’d have to say that at a place with such a casual cool vibe and swallow-able prices, I was impressed with the high quality of the seafood entrees, which far exceeded my expectations.  A lobster tagliatelle was flavorful with buttery claw pieces throughout the ribbons of al dente pasta and the snapper was melt-in-yo-mouth tender.  My grilled Mediterranean whole sea bass was stuffed with sliced lemon and fresh herbs and tasted un-fussed with; its careful preparation resulted in an effortlessly elegant flavor.  Simply put, if you want to go to the Hotel, all you gotta do is holler at me – I’d even go so far as to make plans to stay for an after [dinner] party, checkin’ out 6 in the mornin’…

After the first round of eats, I helped myself to a few more delicious items.  First, an iced coffee from the fine folks at Cafe Grumpy (#4) was an excellent mid-meal refreshment.  Shortly thereafter, I had my first encounter with the lovely ladies at S’Amore who recommended I meet Tom (#5); a salted chocolate graham cracker sandwich with a hand-torched marshmallow, almond and melted dark chocolate. This may be the best dessert I’ve ever eaten.  Seriously. After that, I treated myself yet again – to a Swarovski blinged-out star burst ring (#6) from LYRALOVESTAR by Crystal Streets (wholesale prices at HSF each week, what what!?).  To be honest, you could spend your Saturday doing something other than attending this faboosh affair, but like the sorry dude on YouTube trying to cover Gotye for the 1,000th time, don’t be that guy.