*First pressing vinyl edition.* Baltimore hip-hop experimentalists Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals return with vital new album King Cobra, a mighty, omnivorous record that pushes the duo to unstoppable creative heights.
Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals’ inexhaustible creativity has already gifted us 2020’s Dear, Sudan - a kaleidoscopic, unpredictable joyride of late night channel-hopping - and 2021’s brutal post-George Floyd manifesto Rhino XXL, but King Cobra is a new experience still. It is a masterfully executed expression of both ferocity and joy. ”Not a checklist of all the ills in the world,” say the band, “but it feels like darkness”. An expansively ambitious record, full of fire, and a thrilling new step from artists on a crucial mission.
More than a pure hip-hop producer, Infinity Knives (aka NPR composer-in-residence Tariq Ravelomanana) demonstrates his oft-discussed love of contemporary classicists such as Max Richter and Jóhann Jóhannsson throughout. Hidden deftly amongst the hard-hitting beats and Ennals’ lyrical dexterity are moments of blissful orchestration that betray an abundance of musical talent and a precise control over the cleverly formed layers of melody and harmony.
More than a pure hip-hop record, King Cobra provides a relentlessly inventive backdrop for Brian Ennals’ righteous poetry of vitriol, rage, philosophy, humour and myth-making. “This isn’t an album meant for you to smile to,” Ennals writes, “except when I say something funny.”
"A leading light of Baltimore’s experimental hip-hop scene. A brilliant, unpredictable work" - Spin
"Matches old school flow with meticulous productions" - The Ransom Note
| A1 | 'Neath The Willow's Leaves | 2:38 | |
| A2 | Coke Jaw | 3:26 | |
| A3 | Melancholy Boogie | 2:58 | |
| A4 | The Culling | 1:24 | |
| A5 | Don't Let The Smooth Taste Fool You | 3:31 | |
| A6 | Theme From King Cobra | 2:10 | |
| A7 | The Badger (Jim) | 3:39 | |
| A8 | The Not So Tired Sounds Of Brian Ennals | 3:58 | |
| B1 | Sunday Feb 19th 2017 | 0:42 | |
| B2 | Death Of A Constable | 2:19 | |
| B3 | The Bushman | 2:27 | |
| B4 | Headclean | 2:58 | |
| B5 | Premium Malt Freestyle | 2:37 | |
| B6 | The Culling (Milk And Codeine) | 3:16 | |
| B7 | Bluffin' | 2:30 | |
| B8 | Sambo's Last Words | 2:30 | |
| B9 | On Bread Alone | 1:38 |