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Hip hop seems to be hell bent on making left hand turns. I think it is at its most comfortable when it goes in an unexpected direction. Sometimes it’s hard to believe in ’93 Doggystyle, 36 Chambers, Midnight Marauders, and Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space) were dropped. Why would 2012 be any different?

Months ago we talked about Nacho Picasso, the Seattle rapper with a penchant for comic books cartoons, and clever wordplay. His production crew, Blue Sky Black Death, has been dropping records of experimental hip-hop-strumentals for years with marked precision. The 2011 recordNoir was a vibrant, mood setting record of star-gazing abstraction and hip hop beats. ‘Sleeping Children Are Still Flying’ seems to encapulse this variety of sound. A chorus drenched bluesy guitar line plays over upbeat drums, synths pop and rumble away under the samples. The pops and snaps reveal the ambition of the modern producer, unafraid to stretch sound and time, just to make a great song. The record is filled with them.

Via TheFoxIsBlack