A couple of interesting new artists

I am utterly fed up with the music charts. Music channels on tv seem to show more reality shows than music, with the odd Girls Aloud song thrown in for good measure. Even last month's P2K post by Pitchfork (http://pitchfork.com/p2k/) has left me unfulfilled, as well as sick of hipsters.
In this musical wasteland, the only two new artists that I have managed to appreciate in the the last month sing in languages that I don't understand. Doesn't say much for the lyrical prowess of today's chart toppers does it?
Issa Bagayogo is a Malian musician who I stumbled across on Youtube. This song, Toroya, is apparently about the struggles and suffering of the Malian people.



The second band is called Staff Benda Bilili, a group of disabled Congolese street musicians who live around a zoo in Kinshasa. I remember seeing them mentioned in an article in the Observer way back in January (see http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/jan/18/best-new-acts-2009) and decided to finally have a look. The playing and singing in this song has a really soulful quality to it.