Shabazz Palaces w/ Prophetic and The Dope Folks DJs

As a general rule, rappers don't get many chances to reinvent themselves. Once they're known quantities, the public rarely sees them in a new light, which is part of the reason MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice's various makeover attempts have flopped so hard. It was a considerable feat, then, when Ishmael Butler of the beloved but easily pigeonholed jazz-rap trio Digable Planets built an almost entirely new audience for himself with his latest project, Shabazz Palaces. Released through Sub Pop, of all labels, the group's dazzling 2011 full-length <i>Black Up</i> was a weirder, much harder-edged record than anybody could have expected from the soft-voiced rapper. Its bass rumbles hard, and Butler raps in a cryptic, surrealist flow that's far removed from the straight-laced affirmations of his Digable Planet days.