SHABAZZ PALACES “Shine A Light” is the spaced out jam of the future we need right now.

When Shabbazz Palaces released their debut album “Black Up” up in 2011 they sounded like the future of hip-hop. Six years later and nothing in hip-hop or really, music, sounds so free but focused. The duos follow up in 2014 “Lese Majesty” took the cerebral aspect of their music to a level that made most psychedelic rock bands look timid. New Single “Shine a Light” is our delicious first taste of their third album, Quararz: Born On A Gangsta Star.

The funky name of the album and its lead single is reminescent of something George Clinton would have came up with in the 1970s, and the far out space vibe of “Shine a Light” lives up to the name. The beat is held down by the smoothest sample of the year, Dee Dee Sharps “I Really Love You.” The real magic though, comes from Shabbazz Palaces unpredictability. Taking a 1960s R&B song and flipping it so it sounds like it came from the future not the past. Adding to the spacey vibe is the way MC Ishmael Butlers spits out heady phrases that get the mind wondering. Painting a picture for you without feeling the need to connect every dot. Leaving the whole floating up in space, just grounded enough for you to go along for the ride. The overall effect, with sci-fi like production and guest artists, Thaddiliac funky sung hook, “SHINE A LIGHT ON THE FAKE THIS WAY MY PEOPS CAN HAVE IT ALL” conjures the optimistic hope many people need and deserve right now. It’s the sound of the future, but like much of raps greats from the past, its not music for wallowing but music to put a bounce in your step to help you through the bullshit of the your day.