This week sees the arrival of the latest album from billy woods and Kenny Segal, reigniting the fire they first set ablaze back in 2019, with the release of Hiding Places. From the outset it’s apparent that Maps is not Hiding Places 2. woods himself has stated that neither of them wanted to make a part two, they wanted to make something fresh. But you don’t need his word for it as Maps is clearly its own entity, with its own energy that still smacks of a distinctly woods and Segal collaboration. The album is about journeys, both personal and business. New faces and old stomping grounds. The solitude of tour life and the accompaniment of weed (both good and bad). The trip away and the subsequent return home.
As with last year’s offerings from woods, the features are plentiful and all welcome. Quelle Chris, ShrapKnel, Aesop Rock, ELUCID, Samuel T Herring, Danny Brown and Benjamin Booker, all bring just the right sound to the proceedings, while the solo joints are bolstered by their own strengths. They include Segal’s production which is heavily jazz influenced for the most part, with that style perhaps peaking on the free-flowing excellence of Blue Smoke. In contrast to that, the Danny Brown assisted Year Zero, is at the other end of Segal’s scale and sounds like it was made specifically with the Detroit rapper in mind, thanks to a bassline that shook me to my core. Hangman is another track that stood out in terms of its beat and probably the only time on the album that I felt echoes of Hiding Places.
So there is variation on Maps, but never at the expense of cohesion. It all works beautifully and ends with a moving verse from woods that felt particularly poignant for me as a new father. The album is out in full this (Bandcamp) Friday, with pre-orders available now. Maps is streaming in full below.
gingerslim 