Various Artists Star Rise (Real World) In 1990 Michael Brook, a New-Age guitarist and producer, collaborated with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, a Pakistani singer of Sufi devotional hymns, to create the album Mustt Mustt, an early example of ancient-meets-ambient hybridism. Khan was already a major celebrity in many Eastern countries…

Supersonic Wall to Wall Moustache (Sire) “Welcome to the fucked-up chemical beats of Supersonic,” announces this band’s press kit, which means there’s now more weight on the electronica bandwagon that was initially steered by the Chemical Brothers. Unlike that pioneering duo, however, Darren Pickles and Slapper Dave of Supersonic are…

On a recent Tuesday night at O’Hara’s Pub and Jazz Cafe in Fort Lauderdale, Dale Powers, leader of the five-piece band Jump n’ Jive, glowers as he stands over his electric keyboard. A lanky 43-year-old with pointed features and slicked-back black hair, Powers cuts a dapper figure in a red…

Kacy Crowley Anchorless (Atlantic) This talented singer-songwriter was born in Connecticut and grew up listening to the heartland rock and roll of John Cougar Mellencamp. She did a brief stint as a Grateful Dead groupie then devoted herself to playing music in the coffeehouses of Los Angeles. She played with…