Akai Solo

AKAI SOLO comes from Brooklyn and makes poetic, lo-fi music. Thus far in 2019, he’s already released two albums, From The Burning East With Love and Alone Throughout Heaven And Earth. Pink Siifu, from Los Angeles, is a prolific and knowingly enigmatic rapper and producer who works under a few different names; he won a lot of acclaim for the 2018 album ensley. Both AKAI SOLO and Pink Siifu guested on “Long Grass,” a track from the great new billy woods album Terror Management. And today, AKAI SOLO and Pink Siifu have come together on the collaborative album Black Sand.

Black Sand is a lurching, off-kilter album. Pink Siifu produced the entire thing under his iiye alter-ego. He doesn’t rap on it at all. Instead, AKAI SOLO raps thoughtfully over foggy, broken beat-mists. On first listen, it’s clear that this album is going to take many more listens to unravel, but it’s intriguing enough to be worth the effort.