This Chicago duo has undeniable chemistry: rappers Quentin Branch and Brian Warren formed Angry Blackmen in early 2017, and honed their unpredictable all-caps-style hip hop into debut album HEADSHOTS! (2020) on label Deathbomb Arc. Their follow-up EP REALITY! (2021) brought in their ongoing producer and collaborator Derek Allen, aka Formants, whose gritty production style has come to form the foundation of Angry Blackmen’s sound. Branch and Warren spit ferocious bars over Allen’s industrialised beats – distorted and bit-crushed into oblivion, bassy beyond belief, and burgeoning with chaotic energy. Although, true to their name, Angry Blackmen carry a certain sense of urgency and aggression in their tracks, anger isn’t the only emotion on display in their intricate, experimental hip hop: it has a playful and joyous side to it. At its core, as shown on their recent album The Legend of ABM (2024), their music is about Black experience in the contemporary US – taking into account the political and social issues that come with that and slicing through them with blunt wit and anti-establishment spirit.