E L U C I D & SEBB BASH – I Guess U Had To Be There – Indies Cassette Tape [MAR 13]

Description

Cassette Tape – Indies Only

Two turntables and a microphone. There is a truth in the clarity of that simple coda, a truth that also belies the breadth of what is possible within its confines. Sometimes you gotta get reminded. I Guess U Had To Be There, the new album from NYC rapper E L U C I D and veteran producer Sebb Bash, is one of those ones. So fresh it sounds like it was made tomorrow, but bet money you could put this on in 89 and get heads bopping.

There are moments in music when masters of their craft cross paths at the height of their respective powersrecords like Madvillainy, Liquid Swords, Dr. Octagonecologyst, and Hell Hath No Furywhere the result is more than the sum of its parts. ELUCID and Sebb Bash find themselves in this heady, seemingly effortless ephemera on I Guess U Had To Be There. Everything is both familiar and groundbreaking. The beats shift and flip under ELUCIDs feet but he tightropes it all, delivery nimble as a mountain goat, producer and rapper moving in perfect synchronization. Some shining stars make memorable appearances: billy woods, Breezly Brewin, Estee Nack, Shabaka Hutchings. But this is a two-man show, and the duo keep the spotlight where it belongs. I Guess U Had To Be There is a captivating, convention-defying listen and a high-water mark for two of the best artists in the genre.

Tracklist:

1. First Light
2. Cantata
3. Hands n Feet (feat. Estee Nack)
4. Make Me Wise
5. Coonspeak
6. Equiano (feat. Shabaka Hutchings)
7. The Lorax (feat. billy woods)
8. Fainting Goats (feat. Breeze Brewin)
9. I Say Self
10. Visitation Place
11. Alive Herbals
12. Parental Advisory