Armand Hammer & Alchemist * Haram [New LP]

Looking back more than four years later at Haram, it is easier to see the forest forthe trees. At the time, much of the attention fell on how this outsider duo would fareunder the bright lights- which was fair, Armand Hammer had never done a singleproducer record before- and here they were working with a living legend. Now,with a little distance, it's easier to see how Alchemist stepped out of his comfortzone to meet them where they were, and how all three artists then absconded forparts unknown. The flashbulb energy of "Bring The Stars Out", asymmetric droneof "Chicharrones", fugue-bounce of "God's Feet", and good luck finding analoguesfor "Peppertree" or "Stonefruit". Haram doesn't sound like anything else in theALC discography, nor in Armand Hammer's, for that matter. Haram was a one-shot kill that somehow contained some of the most accessible work ELUCID andbilly woods had ever done, as well as some of their most experimental, and it allsounded cohesive.Needless to say, they didn't do this alone; KAYANA's golden voice upps thewattage on "Black Sunlight," while Fielded's sultry alto gets chopped and screwedon "Aubergine". Earl Sweatshirt's cameo on the sun-soaked "Falling Out the Sky"is already a classic. Curly Castro, Amani, and Quelle Chris all turn up the heat whencalled upon.But since we are talking about retrospect here, the thing about Haram isn't that itstill sounds as good as it did when it came out. The amazing thing is that it actuallysounds even better than it did then. You don't have to take our word for it either, runit up one time, with the lights low and something on ice, see if it doesn't take yousomewhere new, again.