Known Unknowns by billy woods

Known Unknowns is billy woods’ new album, a follow-up to 2013’s Blockhead collaboration Dour Candy. Blockhead is still behind the boards here but there are also a couple beats from his longtime collaborator Aesop Rock. But the center of the whirlwind is still woods, who re-emerges from a two-year hiatus after releasing the avant-garde Today, I Wrote Nothing in early 2015. Known Unknowns finds the artist on more melodic ground, but still his esoteric, acerbic self, spinning verses equal parts joy and terror, wry wit and blind rage. There are guest appearances from ELUCID (Armand Hammer), as well as Aesop Rock, Homeboy Sandman, Googie, singer Barrie McLain and DJ Mo Niklz. Since Dour Candy, Blockhead has worked with Aesop, Sandman and MarQ Spekt but Known Unknowns shows that he and woods have developed their own unique chemistry.

billy woods is a rapper who defies easy categorization; he was born in the U.S. but spent much of his childhood in Africa and the West Indies. On the mic, woods is no less of a conundrum, possessed of versatile flows and an ability to not only tackle topics other artists wouldn’t dream of, but also to bring unique perspectives to the familiar ones.