Why? /// “Crushed Bones” /// Elephant Eyelash
The leadoff track from Why?’s second album is emblematic of a seismic shift. Rap is still self-consciously reflexive, still judged by its verbal athleticism. It may have become the status quo in some respects, but that transition was almost too natural to warrant real interest. What I believe happened, at anticon and elsewhere, is that hip-hop went from being subversive and boastful to wounded and confessional. What You Should Have Heard, 2000-2009 can’t ignore the awesome associative power of acts from cLOUDDEAD to Kanye that got introspective and intimate these past few years. Why? of course brings a thicket of analog indie atmospherics to bear on his thorny phrasework, achieving the best sort of cross-pollination: one that grants an entrance to fans on either side of the synthesis. In a world where it’s increasingly easy to retire into an airless niche of very particular sounds, it’s a relief to know artists will keep pushing boundaries for us.
