Knife Nights

Knife Knights (Shabazz Palaces/Digable Planets) release debut album, new video

In addition being a member of Shabazz Palaces and the reunited Digable Planets, Ishmael “Butterfly” Butler is also one half of Knife Knights with longtime Shabazz Palaces collaborator Erik Blood. Their debut album 1 Time Mirage is out today on Sub Pop and it features appearances from Shabazz Palaces, as well as Porter Ray, Stas Thee Boss (of THEESatisfaction), OCnotes, Thaddillac, El Mizell, Marquetta Miller, Gerald Turner, and Darrius Willrich. It’s in the same general universe as Shabazz Palaces’ abstract hip hop, but more experimental and meditative and less “pop” (not that Shabazz is very pop either, but this even less so). Along with the album release comes a new Dean Blunt-directed video for one of the Shabazz Palaces-featuring songs, “Low Key.” You can watch that and stream the whole album below.

No live dates for Knife Knights at the moment, but Digable Planets are playing their 1993 debut Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space) in full TODAY (9/14) at 5:15 PM at Riot Fest (and that’s one of 10 sets we think you shouldn’t miss). Directly afterwards, Shabazz Palaces will begin their tour with Lauryn Hill. All Shabazz dates are listed below.

Tracklist
1. Bionic Chords (feat. OC Notes & Darrius Willrich)
2. Drag Race Legend
3. Give You Game (feat. Marquetta Miller & Stas Thee Boss)
4. Light Up Ahead (Time Mirage) [feat. Porter Ray, Gerald Turner, Darrius Willrich, OC Notes & Shabazz Palaces]
5. Seven Wheel Motion
6. Low Key (feat. Shabazz Palaces)
7. My Dreams Never Sleep (feat. OC Notes, Marquetta Miller & Shabazz Palaces)
8. Light Work (feat. El Mizell)
9. Can’t Draw the Line (feat. OC Notes)
10. Come On Let’s Go (feat. OC Notes & Marquetta Miller)
11. Mr. President

Shabazz Palaces — 2018 Tour Dates
SAT, Sep 15 ShoWare Center, Kent, WA*
THU, Sep 20 Shoreline Amphitheatre, Mountain View, CA*
WED, Sep 26 Red Rocks Amphitheater, Morrison, CO*
SAT, Sep 29 Smart Financial Center, Sugar Land, TX*
SUN, Sep 30 Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory , Irving, TX*
WED, Oct 3 UNO Lakefront Arena, New Orleans, LA*
FRI, Oct 5 Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, MO*
SAT, Oct 6 Cropped Out Festival, Louisville, KY
SUN, Oct 7 Chicago Theatre, Chicago, IL*

* – w/ Lauryn Hill