Winter is finally here, bringing with it a tinge of happiness, lethargy and regret. At least Christmas is right around the corner, and there is plenty of great new music to crank up on the stereo before dusting off those old Bing Crosby tunes.

This Christmas, a lot of people are going to be asking for electronica CDs. Electronica is the hottest thing going in music right now, as the success stories of Prodigy, the Chemical Brothers and Tricky (among others) can show you.

But those three artists are hardly capable of demonstrating the numerous divergent strains of electronica music or the vast amount of artists currently listed in that genre.

This week, I will look at two of the more hypnotic electronica acts.

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“Imperfection”

Pfilbryte

Pfilbryte first made a name for himself as a member of Dr. Octagon’s posse on the Doctor’s disgustingly hilarious (not to mention great) “Octagynocologist.” Now, Pfilbryte is seeking independent success on a fairly small label (Ignition) with a release that is likely to be ignored by everyone.

This is truly unfortunate because “Imperfection” is a really solid debut. However, the CD is plagued at times by a discrepancy between vocals and sound. Quite often, the lyrics don’t match the song’s rhythm at all. But when the two do match up, it is truly memorable and magical.

“In The Valley” provides one instance of this fusion. It has interesting keyboard samples, a strong repetitive drum and bass backbone and plenty of strange echoes and vocal reverberations.

“Right Of Way” is a prodding song with a murky rhythm and a dark sound. It is fuzzy and often subdued, which adds to the overall atmosphere of the lyrics and tones down the obvious reference to the Beatles’ “I Am The Walrus” (Pfilbryte sings “I am the yuckmouth” in parody).

A funky rhythm helps “Playtime” move along like a Tonka truck filled with diesel fuel, while “Poor But Honest” displays great bass loops and spoken-word rapping.

“Denied” is quirky, with its harmonious duets and catchy pop-influenced keyboard samples. “A Little Bit” overcomes a weak drum loop and mediocre vocals with furious guitar bursts. “Merry Go Round” is minimal with the samples, but has a groovy beat that is mixed with more spoken-word rapping and an extremely bizarre background of bass.

The CD closes out with “Picture Yourself” and “The Beast.” The former invokes the acid-laced spirit of the Beatles’ “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds.” In fact, some of the lyrics are altered carbon copies of Lennon and McCartney’s inspired lyrics (Pfilbryte sings “Picture yourself on your feet in a storm” and passes it off as semi-original).

The latter song opens up with an instrumental techno section that eventually changes into a fuzzy vocalization with R&B style and the careening of an additional fuzzy saxophone.

The music on “Picture Yourself” is obviously spacey and hypnotic (how could it not be, considering the song’s source?). It is full of strange samples and electric squeals, as if Pfilbryte had constructed it by throwing it in a blender.

3 1/2 stars out of five.

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“Portishead”

Portishead

Portishead became famous because of its blend of electronica and spy music. The band’s first release, “Dummy,” proved that its main members, Adrian Utley and Geoff Barrow, were exceedingly intelligent when it came to writing catchy songs that invoked a melancholy mood of despair.

But “Portishead” falls slightly short of its tremendous predecessor. The new CD sounds less solid and more sporadic. While “Dummy” focused on making the perfect soundtrack for a James Brown-meets-Deep Blue-over-a-game-of chess-type event, “Portishead” seems focused on offering a few good tunes to space out over.

“Mourning Air” and “Undenied” are two songs set up this way, but neither one is particularly memorable. “Cowboys” and “Over” are a little better. “Cowboys” differs from the rest of the CD because it is more subversive science fictional lounge music than anything else.

“Over” is interesting because of its huge, fuzzy bass explosions, Utley’s beautiful vocals, a bashful keyboard loop and a really mellow rhythm. Close your eyes and imagine “Mission Impossible” on downers and you have the idea.

“Humming” is an extended haunted house theme song. “Elysium” is Wu-Tang Clan meets James Bond on heroin. “Western Eyes” is organ-laced romanticism.

All three are interesting songs, but none of them hold a candle to “Half Day Closing,” a haunted and mournful song with rumbling bass riffs, surreal samples and an eclectic mixture of sound and space (this song is especially good on headphones).

“All Mine” is another great song that thrives on passionate lyrics, a gripping bass loop and a jazzy feel that comes complete with string orchestration. “Seven Months” is also driven by string orchestration. However, the song has a tendency to burst out with angry undertones and furious lyrics.

Last, but certainly not least, is “Only You,” which contains samples from The Pharcyde’s “She Said” and Ken Thorne’s “Inspector Clouseau” (from the “Pink Panther” movies). This song has a sprawling melody that’s deliriously catchy, especially with its rhythm switches.

“Portishead” really is a good CD, even if it isn’t as good as its legendary predecessor. But even though it fell slightly short of its mark, it is still better than most of the electronica to which I’ve listened lately.

4 stars out of five.