Shabazz Palaces - The Floss Vibes Of Shabazz Vol. 1: Robed In Rareness (EP) - Transparent Red Vinyl

Shabazz Palaces has always made rap that feels beamed in from some glowing future city, and The Floss Vibes Of Shabazz Vol. 1: Robed In Rareness keeps that transmission clean. Out through Sub Pop on 27 October 2023, it’s the first instalment in a two-part run that later welcomed Exotic Birds of Prey, and it plays like a sleek, nocturnal prelude. Ishmael Butler, the project’s anchor and veteran of Digable Planets, pares things back here. The beats are skeletal but lush, the bass moves like low tide, and every synth line feels carefully placed rather than piled on. It’s a short record that invites you to lean in.

What I love most is how considered the space is. Butler’s voice sits forward, calm and cool, gliding across drums that snap without clutter. The palette nods to The Don of Diamond Dreams but trims the excess, favouring textures that suggest smoke and chrome. It’s music built for late trams and empty streets, where small details pop once the city quietens down.

The first proper jolt is Woke Up in a Dream, a collaboration with Lil Tracy that turned heads for good reason. Tracy’s melody has that gauzy, cloud-rap shimmer, but he lands it with a real hook, and Butler wraps around him with sly, elliptical bars. The track slips between worlds pretty neatly, one foot in Seattle’s experimental lane, the other in something more melodic and youthful. There’s a video for it, too, and it nails the song’s soft neon mood.

Binoculars hits from the other angle. Royce The Choice brings grit, and the beat thumps like tyres on wet bitumen. It’s lean, no-frills, and you can hear Butler enjoying the sport of it. His writing remains a joy, all side door metaphors and diamond-cut phrasing that rewards repeat plays. He never yells to make a point, he just shapes the air around a line until it gleams.

The title cut, Robed in Rareness, reads like a mission statement. He leans into the idea of uncommon grace, talk of fabrics and finesse doubled as an ethos for how he builds sound. Across the set, guests pop in and out, but the mood stays coherent. This is Butler tightening the frame, trusting the ear to fill in the negative space. The sequencing helps as well, rolling with the ease of a proper suite rather than a loose bundle of ideas.

If you’ve been following since Black Up, you’ll hear the through-line. The curiosity is still there, the cosmology still intact, but the execution feels more aerodynamic. A lot of acts chasing “futurist” tags end up sounding dated within a year. Shabazz Palaces rarely falls into that trap, mostly because Butler treats the future as a feeling, not a filter. He keeps the drums human, lets the bass breathe, and resists gimmicks. It’s why these tracks sit comfortably next to older favourites without shadowing them.

On the shelf, Robed In Rareness vinyl makes real sense. Sub Pop’s pressings tend to be tidy, and this mix, with its soft low end and clipped percussion, benefits from wax. If you’re crate-digging for Shabazz Palaces vinyl, this one slots neatly between The Don of Diamond Dreams and the twin Quazarz records. And if you’re hunting around a Melbourne record store on a Saturday, keep an eye on the hip-hop experimental section, since local shops sometimes file it there rather than under straight rap. Folks who buy Shabazz Palaces records online will also find it paired with Exotic Birds of Prey in a few bundles, which is a nice way to hear the two-part idea in sequence. Given how many people in vinyl records Australia circles are rediscovering the group’s early run, it’s a handy on-ramp that still feels fresh.

Critics were kind to this one, noting its focus and the way it primes the ear for the next chapter. I’m there with them. It’s not a grand statement, more a polished facet, but that restraint is part of its charm. The songs invite you back rather than demand attention, and the production rewards good headphones as much as a decent system. If you’re curious about Shabazz Palaces albums on vinyl, start here or with Black Up, then trace the arc. Robed In Rareness holds its own, and it signals that Butler’s compass remains true, still pointing somewhere just beyond the horizon.