"Many things you hear and you see/Are not what they appear to be,” says Queens rapper Homeboy Sandman on his new EP. It could be his motto. He’s a musical trompe l’oeil artist: His beats build up steam, then take hairpin turns into abstraction; his rhymes start out as straight forward boasts and veer into politics ("Illuminati"), linguistics ("Cops Get Scared of Me") and feeding the needy ("Canned Goods"). It’s the kind of shtick that can get precious, but unlike many left-field rappers, Sandman's eccentricity feels unforced. And he has a skill for wordplay that keeps you hooked: "Cats ain't out the woods and tryin' be all stud/Kinda like they Tiger Woods, but they can't putt."

Listen To Homeboy Sandman's "The Miracle":

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• Photos: Random Notes

“Youth Knows No Pain”

“Like on 'Youth Knows No Pain' — we are the ones that should demonstrate, because we can take it,” Likke Li said. “We can pierce ourselves, take Ecstasy, dance all night and still go to work at our McDonald's jobs.” Despite the hedonistic sentiment in the song, the Swedish singer also admitted in hindsight her youth had repercussions. “I remember when I was 18-19 and feeling that I know it all,” Li said. “I always feel that I know it all. But that song is about realizing you don’t, and reflecting, ‘Boy, if I only knew what would follow.’”