In 1999, Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani formed Metro Area, an outfit whose retro Italo-disco meshed with a techno flair was a fresh sound for New York. After a series of club-buzzin' 12"s and a well known residency at NYC's APT Club, which hosted their 'Out of Bounds' parties, the duo have made a name for themselves churning out club tracks on their boutique Environ label for those in the know. "I need to be impressed in some way, either by the production or the songwriting, but preferably both," Geist tells Spinner. "This almost never happens anymore."

Australian retro-dance trio Cut Copy have been working dance floors around the globe with their New Order-type fusion of guitars and beats. While they're known to rock the decks doing the DJ thing, they've also got a reputation for one helluva epic rock show. The Aussies are readying the U.S. release of their sophomore effort, 'In Ghost Colours,' on which they gave the production reigns over to DFA's Tim Goldsworthy.

Since Cut Copy's inception in 2001, they've toured with Franz Ferdinand, Junior Senior, Bloc Party, and Mylo, as well as the almighty Daft Punk, not to mention having made quite a name for themselves in their native Melbourne. "We have a great community of like minded artists," guitarist Tim Hoey tells Spinner of the Australian music scene. "Acts like the Avalanches, Riot in Belgium and the Midnight Juggernauts -- we're all good friends and are always playing each other new stuff we've been writing. It's kind of great being a little bit isolated from the rest of the world when writing so you don't get caught up too much on what band or scene is being thrown around."

Self-proclaimed Baltimore Gutter Milkcrate DJ Aaron LaCrate has been tearing up the decks since the tender age of ten. Now, LaCrate has become a staple of the New York scene with his celebrity-laden, down-and-dirty Yo-Yo parties with partner in crime Mark Ronson. LaCrate's notorious party-rockin' sets include a controlled attack of house, hip-hop, ghetto-tech, electro and everything in between.

"There was a time when the scene in Baltimore was almost too real," he tells Spinner. "The city itself was in shambles, with crime, drugs, murder and AIDS rampant in the late '80s. The entire city was extremely poor -- blue collar at best. I was a young DJ working my way up in the local ranks and actually being friends with these local DJ street heroes who had the creativity and the entrepreneurial instincts to ignite a local phenomenon. Watching that as a young kid and hearing local records blowing up in the nightclubs -- and also DJing alongside DJ Equalizer and DJ Class at 12 years old -- was just too exciting for me."

Minimal techno and live music are not terms that are traditionally used together. Enter Cobblestone Jazz, a Canadian trio that pushes the boundaries of electronic music with fierce live sets that preserve the essence and urgency of tightly wound esoteric grooves. The group is fronted by established IDM wizard Mathew Jonson, and came into existence through sheer misfortune. The name Cobblestone Jazz might seem musically misleading, but it bears significant meaning. "A cobblestone is comprised of many different types of rock which symbolizes different to our music styles -- including jazz -- and personalities," Jonson tells Spinner.

Michael Mayer and Superpitcher, two of Germany's minimal masters, officially joined forces to form Supermayer. The pair plan to 'Save the World' -- or at least electronic music -- with their debut album, on which the Kompakt label mates find themselves at the crossroads of grinding-techno and electro-pop derived from a combination of live and virtual instruments.

"We started a band," Aksel Schaufler, aka Superpitcher, told Spinner. "Over the past decade or so, it wasn't exactly the coolest thing to do and we felt comfortable being lone warriors." The electronic supergroup recently made the American rounds, rocking clubs decks and efx style. "So far we only player a few 'supernights,'" Schaufler said, "playing all night long with some special gimmicks and tricks added -- spending a whole night with the audience, playing our favorite music to them."

New York indietronica duo the Glass -- comprised of downtown dance music staples Dominique Keegan and Glen Brady -- have unleashed their latest effort, 'Winter/Fall Collection.' The pair has been balancing live gigs, DJing and producing remixes for the likes of 120 Days and Mylo. Keep reading to download their bangin' new electro-rock mix, with tracks ranging from Daft Punk to Ali Love.

New York's Definitive Jux label and Juggaknot's DJ Boo are nixing the trick and delivering just the treat this Halloween. Boo compiled a spooked-out party-rockin' mix of the labels' recent underground hits from EL-P, Aesop Rock, Rob Sonic and more. Keep reading to download the mixtape and see the full tracklist.