A skilled producer who's been bubbling in the underground since the late ‘90s, DJ Frane has a gift for making mostly instrumental albums that perfectly blend raw funk, sleepy new age, prog-rock, mellow jazz, classic hip-hop, and pretty much everything in between. With a wide-ranging sonic style akin to early DJ Shadow or Lovage-era Automator (without biting either of them), his mesmerizing concoctions aren't really meant for the club — unless you mean the medicinal marijuana club, and in that case, they're ideal. Journey to the Planet of Birds is the third edition of his "Beats To Blaze To" series, and quite possibly his best work to date. "If I Had Wings" combines a rugged breakbeat with grinding guitar licks, vintage analog synths, and an old Warren G sample, while "Take a Look" fuses chimes, harpsichords, sinister keys, birdcalls, and hard-hitting snares. All of the 17 tracks blend together, both literally and figuratively, resulting in the rare album that is best listened to from start to finish. The aural equivalent of thumbing through an Audubon Field Guide after ten bong hits.