Dragon Fli Empire

With Invasion, Calgary, AB's Teekay (rapper/producer) and Cosm (DJ/producer) demonstrate a greater confidence as a duo. Their second effort has a smooth, mellow groove with boom-bap drums and positive, uplifting lyrics and sweet memories. Plus, there's a definite nod to the mid-’90s sound. The Dragon Fli Empire make some interesting choices: "Tight Spot," which features a rare slow verse from Mindbender, contains live didgeridoo by Chris Murdok that threatens to break into a beat box at any moment; and "Freshman" is a faux live track that does feature live melodica by Chaz, however. The posse cut that follows ("Three") features female Vancouver rapper Ndidi Cascade and a song-ending freestyle from Toronto's More Or Les. All three tracks are highlights, as are a few other hype tracks: "Invasion," a posse cut with Touch and Chaz; "Rock the Crowd" with Omega Watts; "Mount Pleasant Remix," featuring FAS KREW crew members Belo and Shortop; and the fist-pumping funk of "The City." On a different vibe is Teekay's chilled ode to "Headphones," while on "Everyday" he laments on a couple of deaths and still gives the song a positive spin over a funky soul track that leaves plenty of room to add your own vocals. By the end of Invasion it's obvious that the DFE are still D-E-F, only more so.