Pitchfork

Jazz-- such a vital part of hip-hop's development in the late 1980s and early 90s, from Gang Starr and A Tribe Called Quest to, uh, Us3-- again plays a major role in the psychedelic funk of UK nine-piece the Heliocentrics. But here it's just one point of light in a mind-bending starscape, performed on instruments, not sampled. "Distant Star", a single from 2007 debut LP Out There, merges David Axelrod's orchestral funk with jazzy acoustic bass, psych-rock guitars, feedback, and the vividness of a movie score. While the original is instrumental save for a woman's trippy narration, this mix of the song features rapping from Percee P and masked man MF Doom. It's quite an improvement. "Look for me just like the Big Dipper," P brays, in a commanding baritone. Doom comes in near the end, wrapping his phlegmy voice around some allusive wordplay before unexpectedly cutting things off, "Gnarly, dude." This mix also gets a bigger universe than the original, adding free-jazz hornblowing and some Indian instrumentation. All the better to stargaze with.

[from the "Distant Star" 12"; due 05/13/08 on Stones Throw; available digitally via Turntable Lab]