Whenever the moon is just right, the Vague Panther picks his favorite MP3s from the web to bring you the “In the Know” series. If you’ve got a tip that might pique his interest email him at vaguepanther(at)strangerdance.com.

When I first heard Kurt Vile’s Constant Hitmaker earlier this year, I bought his other LP, God Is Saying this to You?, the very next day. Needless to say, I was impressed. The Philadelphia songwriter’s peaceful and hazy meditations are the type of tunes you can hum for days without realizing it. Although less sonically complex, fans of Deerhunter should enjoy. Vile’s next full-length album, Childish Prodigy, is due out October 6th via Matador.

Featured on Pitchfork’s coveted “Best New Music” section, Bibio’s Ambivalence Avenue is a stunning album that fits in the realm of sample/loop/electronica music that’s somewhere between pure beats and songs (think Koushik, Boards of Canada and dare I say, CocoRosie). “Lovers’ Carvings” is a song that transforms itself, literally, from guitar instrumental to funky vocal chorus with nothing more than a short pause of silence. Expect this to be on some movie soundtrack very soon.

The Bay Area’s WHY? are set to release Eskimo Snow on September 22 via Anticon. In an interview with Pitchfork, frontman Yoni Wolf explains that the new LP is “the least hip-hop out of anything I’ve ever been involved with.” After listening to “This Blackest Purse” I can definitely say that’s an accurate statement – fans of Alopecia may be caught a little off guard by what’s going on here (was this really done during the same studio session as tunes like “Good Friday”?). But, let’s all try to remain calm until the full release.