The shuffler: Jeppe Laursen, the "Senior" half of Danish duo Junior Senior. Its second album of hip-hop-infused dance-pop, Hey Hey My My Yo Yo, finally gets its U.S. release August 14.
Ladytron, "Playgirl"
Jeppe Laursen: I haven't listened that much to Ladytron. I really like "Playgirl." I remember when we were on tour in the U.S., driving through Phoenix, when the sun was going down—it's kind of a driving song, and it's good with the palm trees in silhouettes. The young Latino kids love them. They kind of dress like Ladytron. They already have dark hair. I guess it's kind of just a style.
Timbaland feat. Keri Hilson, "The Way I Are"
JL: I've always been a big fan of him. He broke through with Aaliyah. He kind of reminds me of Napster, because when that came out it, was probably like, 2002, and I was getting all his stuff [through Napster]. I kind of like the songs from his new album [Timbaland Presents Shock Value]. Some of them are kind of ridiculous. But I have a lot of respect for him. I like the one with The Hives ["Throw It On Me"]. He has a different artist on each song.
Spandau Ballet, "Gold"
JL: Shit, I haven't heard that song for so long. I really have no relationship to them. It's from in the mid-'90s, when Melody Maker in the UK tried to start an '80s wave. They were just too early.
Depeche Mode, "Enjoy The Silence"
JL: Depeche Mode was really, really big in Northern Europe around that time. I lived in Denmark, far away from the big city, so I was all in black clothes and tried to look like Martin Gore, which didn't succeed very well. [Laughs.] I didn't get curls, but almost, if I could've. "Enjoy The Silence" is actually one of my least favorite songs on Violator.
The A.V. Club: Which ones do you prefer?
JL: I really like "Clean" and "Waiting For The Night." "Policy Of Truth" I really wasn't into, either.
New Edition, "Cool It Now"
JL: New Edition, they didn't break through in Europe as a boy band, really, at least not in Denmark, but I really like that song. Their voices were so high-pitched, so I have a feeling there's maybe a little cheating, or they sped up the tape. It's really crazy. Every time I hear them, I'm like, "Hmm." [Laughs.] And then you see the video, and they're like 13, 14—maybe they were 6 or 7. It's funny, because Bobby Brown was right in the limelight. He was like the Michael of the five.
Leila K., "Open Sesame"
JL: It's this Swedish-Moroccan rapper. In the mid-'90s, she was really big in Europe. She's crazy. She's always crazy on drugs, and every TV performance she went to there was a scandal. She has so much personality, and I just love her songs. But they found her homeless in Sweden four years ago, living in the streets, and now she's still cracked-up. I have some friends in Sweden who say they sometimes see her. It's kind of sad.