Bob Sinclar f. Farrell Lennon - Tennessee

While the French may often be on the wrong end of the conquest stick, Frenchmen have planted the Tricouleur atop the DJ booths of clubland for much of the last decade. When a dancefloor isn't packed with movement-phobic hip-hop heads nodding in unison, Frenchmen are often manning the tables, or at least the creators of the wax that's on them. Think: Dmitri From Paris, Air, David Guetta, Daft Punk. Also, think Christophe Le Friant, nom de disque, Bob Sinclar.

Bob Sinclar's latest album, 2006's Western Dream has quietly (as much as a booming house record played at 110 decibels can in any way be considered quiet) dominated dancefloors for most of the last year. It was more than the clubs though, frankly it's pretty much only stateside where his singles "Love Generation" and "World, Hold On" didn't own the airwaves, the clubs and every set of Blaupunkts in earshot for months on end.

Sinclar (presumably) closes the campaign behind Western Dream with fourth single, and yet another excellent slab of house dubbed "Tennessee." The track is classic Sinclar, a larger than life, hands-in-the-air, disco-etched, electro-houser with his trademark...an actual SONG slipped in between the beats. Punctuated by a steel-guitar loop which may have inspired the track's name, "Tennessee" is the perfect palette cleanser for anyone who was disappointed, disgusted or otherwise dismayed that his last single was a uninspired empty re-working of C+C Music Factory's seminal "Everybody Dance Now."

Far more than that though, it's the kind of dance track that it kills me that American radio will never touch. It kills me not because American radio doesn't play dance records often, but when they do it's usually the kind of warmed over Euro-NRG that sounds like it was made in 1995 by labotomized chipmunks, yeah Cascada, we're talking smack! This is not world-changing stuff by ANY means either, but this is what REAL mainstream dance music sounds like. Judged by those standards, this is a fine exemplor.

Plan B vs. Radiohead - Missing Links (Bootleg Mix)

Visceral, graphic and gritty, Plan B is re-writing the book on British rappers one gut-checking rhyme at a time. Don't let the accent fool you, Plan B's debut Who Needs Actions, When You've Got Words tells the story of the underclasses with an honesty and barely sublimated rage that will ring as true in Bed-Stuy as they do in Brixton.

While the rapper/singer/guitarist will likely make his first US inroads via his (sick) acoustic version of "Kidz," he doesn't have to strip it that bare to make his lyrics pop. From Plan B's mashup mixtape "Paint It Blacker," comes this downtempo, yet electric bootleg mix of "Missing Links." Riding a haunting sample of Radiohead's "Pyramid Song," the appropriated backing track mirrors Plan B's gray-sky rhymes perfectly--actually improving on the already top-shelf album version. The story of a neighborhood's drug-fueled descent and the people who've become "missing links" in its wake. The bruising honesty of "Missing Links" stands in stark contrast to the showy veneer of Cristal-popping, Gucci-drenched bling obsessives.

Don't sleep on his debut album due on these shores come April.

Grammy: Judgment Day

Well, the Grammys are over and as usual, my predictions didn't hold up terribly well, just 3 for 7. Even having skipped math my senior year of high school and all through college, I know that's not a passing score. So what went so terribly wrong?

Apparently, the music industry has decided they're ashamed of country radio. After the genre's gatekeepers effectively banned and physically burned Dixie Chicks records following Natalie Maines' comments on President Bush, the Grammys decided to champion the First Amendment in a big, big way; as well as one of their all-time favorite artists. I thought Grammy would honor Dixie Chicks in the genre categories and split the biggest awards between Mary J. Blige and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, they did the opposite. James Blunt apparently won nothing, same for Corinne Bailey Rae.

Of the performers, Chris Brown turned in what appeared to be about an 85% Memorex performance as his energetic stepping left him out of breath before it was his turn to sing. The worst part being that he immediately followed a stripped-down vocal and piano take from the still-potent Lionel Richie and immediately preceded a typically Earth-moving vocal from Christina Aguilera. The Police whetted appetites for their expected forthcoming tour, even if Sting decided not to attempt all the high notes. For my money, Corinne Bailey Rae, John Mayer, John Legend, Justin Timberlake and particularly Gnarls Barkley were impressive. With Gnarls taking my top performance of the night, for a version of "Crazy" that gave me goosebumps.

Shakira, for the sake of our love, or at least that "obsession," as your legal team and the authorities like to call it, could you retire "Hips Don't Lie," and stop hanging out with Wyclef? I'd send another snail mail letter, but I had a b*tch of a time trying to stop the bleeding that time before. I won't discuss the quality of the Carrie Underwood/Rascal Flatts performance. Country, overall is not my favorite genre, but I felt like by the time they exited the stage I could've watched the entire Lord Of the Rings-trilogy...the director's cuts.

Either way, the Grammys are over, and now Radio V can get on with the business of looking forward to the rest of this year's best new music. not that our strike record will improve that much, but the ride will be fun, I promise ya.