Armand Hammer, the group comprising rappers ELUCID and billy woods and producer The Alchemist share “Calypso Gene”. This is the latest single from Mercy, their new album which is out on November 7 via Backwoodz Studioz with global physical distribution by Rhymesayers Entertainment.
“Calypso Gene” serves as a deconstruction of imperfect memories and the paradoxical loaded metaphor of water as both a source of spiritual cleansing and a demarcation of militarized borders. Featuring vocals from Silka and Cleo Reed, its collage of rippling jazz piano and phantom spirituals amplifies the tension between bleak realism and the unknowable mystic. Listen to “Calypso Gene” below.
Armand Hammer and The Alchemist build worlds. Their first was Haram and it remains locked in orbit, equal parts lush and foreboding. Their new one is called Mercy and it’s made out of blood and empire, children’s laughter, unpaid parking tickets and unkept secrets. Rappers ELUCID and billy woods are joined on the mic by Earl Sweatshirt, Quelle Chris, Cleo Reed, Pink Siifu, Kapwani and Silka. The Alchemist did everything else.
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