Grouper - A I A : Alien Observer/Dream Loss (2011)
Listening to these right now. These pair of albums are probably the most beautiful I've heard this year, something about the music just draws you right in and immerses you. The combination of overlapping drones, oceans of reverb, far-away female vocals and lo-fi production creates a very mysterious and engaging sound, like she recorded in a huge vast open space just by herself, alone and shrouded in darkness.
The Stooges - The Stooges (1969)
Brilliant stuff! Although I've heard a good few of their songs before this is the first Stooges album that I've fully listened to. What strikes me is the awesome, menacing guitar sounds, and combined with Iggy's vocals creates a very threatening but controlled sound. The 10 minute 'We Will Fall' on the other hand is a hypnotic, super-trippy epic that will probably sound awesome with a bit of smoke.
Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle (1979)
Going to listen to this in a little while. I'm already familiar with the song 'Cars' which I really love. Hopefully the rest of the album is just as good.