By the time rap superduo UGK gained fame poppin' off on Jay-Z's "Big Pimpin'," they were already revered for putting candy-painted, Texas-centric swag on the map. But since Bun B's player-partner, Pimp C, died in 2007, the sound of Bun soldiering on feels like Dan Aykroyd donning his Blues Brothers suit without John Belushi around. This adds an elegiac poignancy to Bun's synth-strafed verse on the Drake (useless!) feature "It's Been a Pleasure," and, through the ghoulish wonders of digital sutures, Bun and Pimp ride again on the dick-swingin' posse cut "Right Now," joined by (who else?) 2Pac and Trey Songz. But this overlong album can't compare to UGK's truly classic Ridin' Dirty. Then again, as Bun himself asserts over snarling guitar on "Gladiator," "Opinions is like assholes/And I don't like assholes/So stick yo' opinions in yo' asshole." Noted.

“Ambling Alp”

The "Ambling Alp" was the nickname of the six-and-a-half-foot-tall Primo Carnera. Though the song is named after the Italian-born 1930s heavyweight champion, Yeasayer are actually paying tribute to boxing legend Joe Louis with this first-person psychedelic dance-rock tune. “I was always interested in writing a song that had boxing mythology in it,” Yeasayer’s Chris Keating said. “It’s pretty fascinating: There were so many amazing characters, and it was so closely entwined with 20th century history.” Yeaseyer also invokes German champ Max Schmeling and hints at the historical significance placed on the historic bouts between the Nazi-era boxer and the African-American Louis.