All this week, the Song of the Day highlights Levitation Fest artists.
Shabazz Palaces make cosmic music, simultaneously far-reaching and hyper-focused on the smallest details. Seemingly a lifetime ago, Ishmael Butler explored the edges of rap with Digable Planets—reuniting for a tour this summer–but with producer Tendai Maraire, the Seattle duo blows up those edges. “Focus” is the first word on Shabazz Palaces’ stunning 2014 album, Lese Majesty, and from there, the music unravels in a series of suites, each song an unlocked door.
But even if they give you doors, Palaces don’t give you answers. Late in the album, “Motion Sickness” spins in place, a gleaming glyph. There’s a hustle and hustler at the center, treading water before the water catches up. It does, and Butler and Maraire are there to ride the waves.
Catch Shabazz Palaces on Friday, April 29 in the Levitation Tent at 7:05 p.m.
–Art Levy