Major Lazer - Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do [2LP]

Diplo and Switch built Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do as a love letter to Jamaican dancehall, and Major Lazer's 2009 debut spreads its wild energy across two LPs.

The project arrived with its own comic-book mythology, a one-armed Jamaican commando with a laser for a limb, but the music took its sources seriously. The duo assembled a cast of vocalists including Vybz Kartel, Mr. Vegas, T.O.K. and Turbulence, then smashed dancehall riddims into electro, baile funk and club bass, creating a blueprint that countless producers have borrowed since.

"Hold the Line" opens with Mr. Lex and Santigold trading lines over a frantic, blaring beat. "Pon de Floor", with Vybz Kartel, is the record's most famous moment, its bouncing hook later sampled by Beyoncé for one of her biggest anthems. "Keep It Goin' Louder" brings Nina Sky and Ricky Blaze for a sunnier, more melodic lift, and "Bruk Out" pairs T.O.K. with Ms. Thing for pure dance-floor chaos.

The production is loud, playful and deliberately rough around the edges, full of air horns, chopped vocals and bass weight that rattles speakers.

It still sounds like the best sound-system party you could hope to stumble into, and on double vinyl the grooves have plenty of space to hit as hard as they should.