If you haven't been listening to billy woods for the past few years, are you a real fan of Hip-Hop? For half a decade, woods has been dropping stellar LP after stellar LP, whether he's on his own or working with his partner in crime E L U C I D, and just a few months ago, he released one of his best albums to date. To celebrate the achievement, woods hosted a blockbuster party that served to appreciate the remarkable talent that helps make the label one of the best in the game. Another one of the year's best records comes from DJ/producer Preservation and Gabe 'Nandez and as they took the stage together, they whipped dusty Jazz grooves together with relative ease, their flow harmonious and catching a chilled-out vibe. They hit with swagger and had the crowd bouncing along to the esteemed beats of Preservation while 'Nandez rallied his vibrant rhymes to unleash their dynamic vision full of historical connections and shared influences. Pulling back the beat to spit bars in French, it was clear that the duo was ready to make a statement and show-up alongside their peers to prove their crew really does roll hard. Hopping in just for a quick burst of songs, E L U C I D rolled into "S P E L L I N G" and whisked the crowd into his ashy, spun-out vibes which allow him to deliver his rhythms in such a signifying way, you'd be hard pressed to name someone else who could be spitting these words. Bruiser Wolf also only hit the stage for a short while, but managed to bang out some fine work of his own that carried the night forward with growing anticipation of the main event. When the man himself, billy woods, finally took to the stage, he immediately called out for MIKE to make a quick appearance and from there he'd bring out some of his closest collaborators to help hammer home the fact that there really is no competition for Backwoodz and the caliber of work they're releasing from some of the most prominent and innovative rappers in the business. Wasting no time, woods dove right into the opening tracks from Golliwog, each one raising the energy of the room as the crackling beats served as the perfect foundation for woods' undisputed words. "Misery" and "Waterproof Mascara" hit with especially sharp barbs and warped beats that made the room spin while woods' dexterity made him seem like the most poignant person in the world. With barely a chorus in sight, each track has woods' monologuing to an unprecedented degree, his stamina to unfurl these words with such distinction and clarity is astounding and to see him go track after track boggles the mind. As the words spiral from his mouth, key lyrics stick out and there are certain lines that are sure to make the crowd come together, like on "Corinthians" when he remarks at the budget in which the U.S. Military provides to Israel to bomb Gaza. woods' lyrics are full of such staggering thoughts and when they penetrate the bleak beats and enter your conscious, they're impossible to un-hear and they somehow become louder when you hear the song with the upcoming anticipation. When these moments hit on stage and the lyrics are chanted back by a bumping crowd, the prophetic wordplay feels even more heightened and revelatory. As it was a hometown show, friends jumped in throughout the set and guests like Despot, Cavellier, and ShrapKnel all made their way to the stage, but when Armand Hammer formally had the stage together, they traded verses with the utmost skill and dexterity that it only amped up the excitement for their new album on the way. For his biggest hometown show to date, billy woods made sure to show up and put on a show that would properly honor the legacy Backwoodz has built. Watching woods pulled off the night with such success is just another reason there's no one else out there doing it quite like him.
Set list:
02 "STAR87"
03 "Misery"
04 "Waterproof Mascara"
05 "Asylum"
06 "Windbreaker" (With FIELDED)
07 "Christine"
08 "Corinthians" (With Despot)
09 "Iron Galaxy" [Cannibal Ox cover] (With Vordul Mega)
10 "Pitchforks & Halos"
11 "spongebob"
12 "steak knives"
13 "checkpoints"
14 "Babylon By Bus" (With ShrapKnel)
15 "Flight Risk" [PremRock cover] (1st Verse from PremRock)
16 "A Doll Fulla Pins" (With Yolanda Watson)
17 "Golgotha"
18 "Make No Mistake"
19 "Matthew receives painting from Takashi Murakami" [FOHDH Matthew cover] (With FOHDH Matthew)
20 "Manigaults" [Cavalier cover] (With Cavalier)
21 "Instant Transfer" (With ELUCID)
22 "Niggardly (Blocked Call)"
23 "Switchboard" (ELUCID verse only)
24 "bedtime"
25 "BLK ZMBY"
26 "houthi"
27 "All Jokes Aside"
28 "Pollo Rico"
29 "Smith + Cross"
30 "Keloid" (Cuts only)
31 "Born Alone"
No comments:
Post a Comment