Like Elucid, Amani hails from New York City and is no slouch on the mic. The skill is undeniable in "Shaft In Africa", wherein Amani's compelling bars examine how capitalistic ideals result in heartless interactions. The rapper questions the vapidness of solely defining one's self-value and actions by what one has earned or stands to gain.
"Lot of y'all got some nerve for certain / Findin' purpose for the sake of earnin' / Or for to take it or return it / To what extent are you really burdened? / To what extent is your conscious furnished? / To what extent does your word hold weight - or is it really worthless?""Shaft In Africa" features an impressive guest verse by Suede Jury, who covers the fallacy of the bootstrap theory and the racist violent ethos of policing in the United States.
"It's a mixed bag / 24 hours feel like they too fast / Pull myself by proverbial bootstrap / Crawl from the shards of a rose-tinted wreckage / Uncle sam turn me into a newsflash / Hashtags hit hard as pound sign / Contract killers behind a blue mask"Amani and Suede Jury's captivating reflections are made all the more moving by producer D00F's melancholy combination of flute and distorted piano. The song ends with a sample of Angela Davis, who speaks on how liberation from the oppressive systems that create the reality of "Shaft In Africa" is an ever-shifting concept.
An Unknown Infinite is unapologetically New York City hip hop. Just listen to Amani's gruff tone and cadence on "A Not So Fruitful Wealth" - he could not be from anywhere else. Listening to the grit and wordplay Amani brings to lines like "Can't blow this like lungs do, smoke just to cope with this concrete jungle aye / Late nights be my vice, burnt lungs / Black soap can't get rid of this dirt done", it's hard not to think that the late Prodigy would be proud. Like Mobb Deep and Cannibal Ox, Amani and King Vision Ultra have a dark and distinct sound that transports the listener to the cold reality of the birthplace of hip hop. The lineage of the more grisly side of boom-bap courses through King Vision Ultra's beats, but the form has evolved beyond the more defined traditionalist paradigm and the results are thrilling.
Firm drums and a menacing environment full of enigmatic sounds make "A Not So Fruitful Wealth" the equivalent of Mobb Deep going to outer space. "Hell Juice" boasts an entrancingly minimalist and brooding atmosphere that fits Amani's style perfectly. After a haunting poem on the sinister nature of legality (Song of the Law Abiding Citizen by June Jordan), Amani delves into the contradictions that an unforgiving city creates. Although he "Fashions [his] impulse after John Africa", the anti-capitalist founder of MOVE, Amani follows this with "But I'm a capitalist, what a character flaw / You either stackin' your chips or you a scavenger boy / I done seen enough shit, to turn your matter straight void". This cynicism creates an interesting juxtaposition which suggests that even though Amani realizes that an ideology of profit over everything is not the path to liberation, he recognizes the cut-throat circumstances that reinforce this mentality.
Both Amani and King Vision Ultra are consistently great throughout An Unknown Infinite. It's just over 40 minutes of engrossing rhymes and intriguingly layered production. Regardless of if they come in the form of emcees like AKAI SOLO ("Concrete Slides") and maassai ("Holy Water") or producers such as Ahwlee ("Throw The Fear") and Nick Hakim ("Monie Said So"), all of the guests are on their A-game. On "Monie Said So" and the opening track, "An Unknown Infinite", Amani and King Vision Ultra are given a shoutout by someone who knows a lot about talented New York City-based hip hop artists - Monie Love, a member of the legendary Native Tongues crew. It's a fitting touch for a brilliant record that is undoubtedly aware of the past but never trapped by it. An Unknown Infinite may only be Amani and King Vision Ultra's first album together, but they are already a force to be reckoned with.
