billy woods - Aethiopes

This is Billy’s first solo project since his 2019 record “Terror Management”. It was entirely produced by Preservation, the pair actually already worked together before. Preservation did some of the production, on his last solo record. Woods was also featured on Preservation’s 2020 compilation album “Eastern Medicine, Western Illness”. I heavily praised that record, so i was extremely excited to hear them collaborate again.

The first thing you’ll notice are the insane features. I’m happy to say, that they mostly deliver. Boldy James, Elucid, Mike Ladd, EL-P, Despot and Quelle Chris definitely did their thing. I got an instant stank face when EL-P, slid in the line “It's all a stab in the back, et tu Brutus”. By far my favourite track on the album is “NYNEX”. It starts with a subtle and eerie instrumental, that develops into a more urgent and energetic beat. Elucid took full advantage of the insane transition. Billy is in top form here. Giving us more of his signature dark, satire style of rap that’s delivered in a ranting manner. It’ll still take me weeks, probably months to decipher the true meanings of each song.

Preservation deserves serious praise for the production. It’s ominous, dark and eerie but it still manages to sound elegant at points. It’s hard to describe, because the instrumentals can also be very disorienting. It’s some of the best production Woods has ever rapped over. That’s no easy feat to accomplish either, since he’s collaborated with The Alchemist, Blockhead and Kenny Segal before. I’m glad to say this is one of Woods’ strongest records, it’s a worthy addition to his already extensive discography.

Favourite Tracks: Wharves, NYNEX, Christine, Heavy Water, Remorseless.

Strong Eight /8