Album Review: Shabazz Palaces - Quazarz: Born On A Gangster Star

There's courage in abandoning immediacy and going for a big concept.

There's also courage in trying to make your music more accessible than your established listenership is accustomed to. Since CAYA shows this clearly: traditional Shabazz Palaces weirdness opens the track. But there is a build towards availability. Rhythm descends. Melodies emerge. Earlier this year, Dirty Projectors merged a legacy as fascinating, elusive creatives with something more poppy. The result was elevation. With Quazarz: Born On A Gangster Star, and particularly Shine A Light, Shabazz have come close to pulling the same trick. We get the difficult and we also get the available. The contrast is enchanting.