Zero 7
Simple Things
While Zero 7 may have garnered accolades with the UK audience and music press by touching their magic musical wands to Radiohead, Terry Callier and Lenny Kravitz tracks - all variables factoring into a coveted Mercury Prize nomination and other awards for Simple Things - they've been patiently waiting for Americans to chill out to debut their album stateside. And in a time of rattled nerves, this might be the right moment.

Zero 7 (comprised of longtime North Londoner friends Sam Hardaker and Henry Binns) became the talk of the town with their sexy, contemplative "Distractions" last year. It gave those who relish the astral, dreamy, blanketing sounds of bands such as Air a glimpse into their virtuosic production talents, which are reflected in the cinematic nature of each song. What results is a tangible familiarity, though this could also be due to the fact that Quincy Jones, Charles Stepney and Ray Charles are the duo's reference points.

Simple Things leaves no visible seams, whether it be the jump from the instrumental, jangly "Give It Away" to the quick-footed Rhodes guitar responding to Mozez's vocals on the title track. Zero 7's best asset is Sia Furler, who takes memorable songs ("Destiny," "Distraction") to their elaborate potentials with a voice that melts metal. A major gripe can be that this genteel album is just too eager to please all types of listeners, but Simple Things' key is fixing you into such a warm and comforting place that you can't muster enough anger to protest. Phuong-Cac Nguyen

Greyboy
Mastered the Art
San Diego's Greyboy, a Californian producer akin to the British acid jazz pioneer Gilles Peterson, smacks beat heads upside the head as he strays from his jazz-infused formula on his third album in a decade. What is most impressive here is the sheer diversity of tracks, most of which manage to stay contemporary despite some retro tinges. Instrumental components, like guitars and other stringed instruments, tap new frontiers by becoming essential colleagues to hopping rhythms.

The title track, "Mastered the Art," highlights a xylophone thread within a hip-hop fabric. Watch out for a head rush on "Uknowmylife," a chin-nodder that's apt to produce neck cramps as Cincinnati's MC Main Flow drops slippery rhymes over an infectious melody, and "Dealin' With the Archives," a willowy track accentuated with scratches. "Polyphonix" is a body-groover that utilizes horns and soft "ooh, ooh, ooh" and "ba da ba ba" vocals to create a breezy old television soundtrack that has a distinctly classic feel, while "Marrakesh" (and especially the heavy, menacing "Logan's Run") throws in some spy-movie flavor. The last track is a seven-minute bossa nova remix version of "Mastered the Art" from Italian producer Nicola Conte. It's more than just a bonus on an otherwise already complete LP - it brings the album full circle. In the label's press release, Mastered the Art has been deemed as "something you can expect from a Southern Californian beat head," but the substantial roster of cuts proves the pigeonhole classification as inaccurate. Ubiquity's first-born artist makes his parents proud once again. Phuong-Cac Nguyen