I notice that the Physics' just-released Three Piece EP arrived just as the sunshine did. Coincidence? No such thing, my friend—I believe that everything happens when and how it's supposed to. So I'm supposed to be running "My Place" on repeat, because the universe made it so. All three tracks bang, but it's Thig Nat's easy serenade to afternoon QT that most lingers in my mind like Seward Park grill smoke on your shirt (or Seatown weed smoke on your fingertips). "Jet Set" isn't about dollar Rainiers at the Capitol Club but rather Monk Wordsmith's commendable corporate hustle; between the drums on this and the gorgeous organ ebb on "My Place," Physics producer Justo is, like any chef worth his mis en place, a master of simplicity, able to bring deep flavor out of great local ingredients. Would-be chairmen of the board, take notice: Simplicity always wins. "Coronas on Madrona" (I love that title) sports a turnt-up double time from Thig, the pugilistic power of Stahi Bro Tubman Jr. aka Maineak B, not to mention some backyard boogie from track producer DJ Nphared. This EP is comfort listening, the aural equivalent of that three-piece of golden-brown goodness from Popeyes that you drove 20 minutes to get. I would say this EP is bound for nonstop burn through the summer, but my guess is that the Physics' upcoming full-length, Love Is a Business, is going to do that. Hit up www.thephysics .bandcamp.com.

"I take a swig of this vodka, pour me some borscht/Knock at my door, got a smoker on the porch/Mom's outta town, she left me the keys/I done turned this whole house to a one-stop speez..."

My favorite Chopper District/Russia/Ukraine representer, Avatar Young Blaze, is back with another one—the much-anticipated mixtape/album (your pick, it's all original music) Baptized in Vodka. Full of the usual grim murder tales and explicit street law, Av is at his most self-aware and as unrepentantly G as ever, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Av's a beast lyrically and a tireless hustler to boot—he's been down in L.A. putting things together, and I suspect he's forging some serious overseas connects. Linking up with such noted menace-maestros as the Alchemist, Araab Muzik, and Ty Fyffe (not to mention Seattle's Apoulo), mobbed-out Young Blaze is quietly turning into a phenomenon. Wakey, wakey...

Lioness and Ispire, the two-woman crew known as Canary Sing, just dropped The Beautiful Baby EP online (www.canarysing .bandcamp.com). Over production from Justo, MTK, Amos Miller, Toast, and Marcus D, the two rep their town proudly with collegiate rhymes, declaring "our power's on the conscious tip" but unafraid to flex their "Femininity," or even nerd out with the comic-book battle track "Heroines." However, the boilerplate conscious-rap fun-bash undertones most prominent on "Club Hit"—for all its noble intentions—can't help but come off outdatedly backpack. "You are not alone, said flesh to bone," begins Lioness on the EP's best moment, the Language Arts–featuring "These Days"—her bars, paired with Ispire's jazzy hook, are pure chemistry, hinting at greater things to come. recommended