Friday Five

Inspired Flight is a San Diego guitarist/dj duo making down tempo pop featuring some very talented rappers including Inspectah Deck and underground/backpacker troupe Living Legends. They have a knack for integrating a range of genres in one song, often switching gears and interrupting a chilled out instrumental with a skilled verse. It's not quite Gorillaz, but they definitely have something. "It's The Chemicals" is a serotonin heavy journey featuring Scarub of Living Legends. Their debut is titled We All Want To Fly, and you can grab it here, or download the title track featuring Inspectah Deck in exchange for your email.

Inspired Flight feat. Scarub - It's The Chemicals

"How 'ye doin'? Who 'ye screwin?" One highlight. Jay Z referencing Axl Rose and Norman Mailer is another. Also, Kanye sheds light on Iran, Korea (North, I assume), Islam, and Van Gogh. Thoroughly entertaining remix of a great song.

Kanye West feat. Jay Z & Swizz Beatz - Power (Remix)

Yuck, sometimes Yu(c)k, from North London, New Jersey, and Hiroshima, are a highly touted young band currently opening for Modest Mouse in the U.K. The exposure will surely make them a household name, as they do everything from ballads ("Daughter," "Automatic") to 90's pop rock ("Georgia") very well. Get a better version of Yuck's story over at the ever-vigilant Guardian.

Yuck - Georgia
Yuck - Daughter

Thanks to Tom Robinson's Introducing for pointing me to a blog called Awesome Tapes From Africa. It's exactly what it sounds like. Lots of great cassette rips from across the continent with downloads aplenty. Botswana's Shumba Ratshega, real name Moses Malapela, is one of many great discoveries. Makhirikhiri is perfect summer listening, heavy on handclaps, choruses and whistle-y sorts of things.

Download the whole thing here.

Last off, Montreal behemoths Chromeo return with Business Casual, the highly anticipated follow up to Fancy Footwork. Lead single "Don't Turn the Lights On" is sure to get loads of remixes, one of note by the Italian/Belgian duo Aeroplane.

Chromeo - Don't Turn The Lights On (Aeroplane Remix)