Last year, the great abstract rap duo Armand Hammer got together with producer the Alchemist for Mercy, their second collaborative album. It was one of our favorite rap records of the year, and it came shortly after billy woods, one half of Armand Hammer, released his own stunning solo LP GOLLIWOG. Now, ELUCID, the other half of Armand Hammer, is getting ready to follow his own 2024 solo record REVELATOR with I Guess U Had To Be There, a full-length team-up with producer Sebb Bash.

Sebb Bash comes from Switzerland, and he’s done a bunch of work with both ELUCID and Armand Hammer in the past. According to a press release, he’s “the Alchemist’s favorite producer,” which is some real “your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper” business. I Guess U Had To Be There includes contributions from billy woods, Breezly Brewin, Estee Nack, and Shabaka Hutchings, but it’s mostly about the chemistry between ELUCID and Bash.

Lead single “First Light” is a slow-building meditation. Sebb Bash’s productions starts as an eerie, minimal glide, with no drums other than handclaps. Sounds slowly pile up, but the tension never breaks. ELUCID poetically dances across it, and I think it’ll take a few listens to parse out most of what he says on it. MATTIE, a past Armand Hammer collaborator, is listed as a featured artist, but I’m not sure what they do.

ELUCID will spend much of the next year touring across Europe and North America with Armand Hammer. Before that, though, he’ll do a few shows with DJ Haram. Below, check out director Joseph Mault’s impressionistic “First Light” video, the I Guess U Had To Be There tracklist, and ELUCID’s solo tour dates.

TRACKLIST:
01 “First Light”
02 “Cantata”
03 “Hands n Feet” (feat. Estee Nack)
04 “Make Me Wise”
05 “Coonspeak”
06 “Equiano” (feat. Shabaka Hutchings)
07 “The Lorax” (feat. billy woods)
08 “Fainting Goats” (feat. Breezly Brewin)
09 “I Say Self”
10 “Visitation Place”
11 “Alive Herbals”
12 “Parental Advisory”

TOUR DATES:
2/04 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry ^
2/05 – Chicago, IL @ Subterannean ^
2/06 – Detroit, MI @ Loving Touch ^
2/07 – New York, NY @ Nightclub 101 ^
2/10 – East Hampton, NY @ Daily Op ^

^ with DJ Haram

I Guess U Had To Be There is out 3/13 on Backwoodz Studioz, with global distribution through Rhymesayers and Secretly Distribution.

Backwoodz Studioz