Post-Pride Playlist

The eponymous 2011 album by Arthur's Landing was a cause for celebration.

A musical collective whose members had previously performed with the late gay musical mastermind Arthur Russell, Arthur's Landing joined the chorus of others who made efforts to keep Russell's music and memory alive. Four years later, Arthur's Landing returns with the double-CD remix disc "Second Thoughts" (Buddhist Army). It's hard to imagine what Russell, whose contributions to dance music can still be felt today (just ask gay rapper Cazwell, who sampled Russell's Loose Joints track "Is It All Over My Face?"), would think about the current state of remixing.

Still, it is eye- and ear-opening to hear the Cooked Audio mix of "It's a Boy," the Alkalino mix of "Tell You Today," the Standard Planets mix of "Dumbo Dumbo," and the Virgin Magnetic mix of "Change My Life," and the way they make Russell more relevant than ever.

Like Russell, Jobriath was a musician far ahead of his time, whom we lost too soon when he died of AIDS in 1983. As groundbreaking an artist as Russell, Jobriath was an unapologetically gay performer, marketed by Elektra Records in the early 1970s as American glam rock's answer to David Bowie. Walking the walk and talking the talk in equal measure, Jobriath failed to catch on as hoped and was soon set adrift. Over the years, he's been rediscovered by musicians (hello, Morrissey) and hipsters, and finally got some of his due. The attractively packaged DVD/LP set "Jobriath A.D. - A Rock N Roll Fairy Tale + Popstar: The Lost Musical" (Factory 25) combines Kieran Turner's well-received doc about Jobriath (including a wealth of bonus features) with the clear vinyl album containing the previously unreleased songs and Jobriath's commentary from Popstar, his "lost musical."

The field of prolific gay rappers is so small that it's easy to be fans of both Cazwell and SoCalled without any of that East Coast/West Coast competitive hype that troubled mainstream rap. Since the release of his brilliant debut "The SoCalled Seder" 10 years ago, gay, Canadian, Jewish rapper SoCalled (aka Josh Dolgin) has been expanding his musical palette. He continues to do so on "Peoplewatching" (Dare To Care). Still a wordplay wizard as you can hear on "Dreamin'" and "Everyone Else Must Fail," SoCalled plays well with others, giving them voice on "Boyfriend Material" (featuring Jordanna Singer and Narcy) and "Never See You Again" (featuring Pierre Perall, Fred Wesley, Rich Ly and Mike Dubue). SoCalled's brushstrokes also include the Tin Pin Alley meets Brill Building of "Fire on Hutchison Street" and the bonus track, Moe Koffman's dance number "Curried Soul 2.0."

When SOAK (aka Bridie Monds-Watson), a queer, Irish singer-songwriter at the end of her teen years, sings "A teenage heart/is an unguided dart/We're trying hard/to make something of what we are" on "B A Nobody," she knows what she's talking about. Her debut album "Before We Forgot How To Dream" (Rough Trade) wears its Tegan and Sara influences on its tattoo-sleeve. SOAK takes that inspiration and runs with it on "Blud" and "Garden." But SOAK has her own unique voice on "Sea Creatures," "Hailstones Don't Hurt" and the instrumental interludes "A Dream to Fly" and "If Everyone Is Someone, No One Is Everyone."

You might think you were listening to Tony Award-winner Alan Cumming singing on the campy "Sunset Blvd.," the title track of Promis & Matthews' concept album (Stroboscopic/JFPMusic). But you're actually listening to openly gay, Chilean-born singer/songwriter Jose Promis, who has again teamed up with music legend Ian Matthews (ex-Fairport Convention). Promis & Matthews cover Amanda Lear's "The Sphinx" with compelling results. Of the original selections, the glammy "Stars Are Ageless," "The Last Pop Star" and "Nobody Ever Leaves a Star" shine brightly.

Legendary lesbian guitarist Debbie Smith (Curve, Echobelly) is back with her new band, the all-female trio Blindness, and its debut album "Wrapped in Plastic" (Saint Marie). Standout tracks include "No One Counts," "Sunday Morning" and "Deserving." It's fitting that Honeybird (aka Monique Mizrahi) identifies as bisexual on her album "Out Comes Woman" (facebook.com/honeybirdmusic). Like the impossible-to-pin-down bi community, Honeybird's music is difficult to label. An amalgam of musical influences ranging from punk to jazz to tropical and beyond, Out Comes Woman is challenging and rewarding.

Out musician Derek Bishop goes for a retro-disco vibe (read: real musicians, including Pansy Division drummer Luis Illades) on his second album Bicycling in Quicksand (derekbishop.net). Bishop's got the beat on "Turn Around" and "Baggage," and there's a new-wavy influence on "Automatic" and "Taffy." The new wave also washes over "Meanwhile Back on Earth" (planetalphanaut.com), the third album by queer artist Alphanaut (aka Mark Alan). Out-of-this-world tracks include "No One's Normal," "Is This My Country?" and the Prefab Sprout-ish "Electricity."