Stanisland Magazine

ELUCID and Sebb Bash’s fresh project I Guess U Had To Be There is art with caveats

Last updated: 16th March 2026

ELUCID is one talented rapper. Partnering alongside frequent collaborator and label mate, billy woods, the Backwoodz Studioz roster remains ever beefy and the duo deserves thanks for that alone.

In partnership with Rhymesayers Entertainment, the lyricist (real name Chaz Hall) and producer Sebb Bash, unleash a fiery new album I Guess U Had To Be There. Once again, the rapper ticks all the usual skill boxes as a savant, and saddles up with the gifted composer to perform an exhibition of rhyme treats. But while the spitter is I one form, there are some caveats.

Review: I Guess U Had To Be There

Featuring, once again, a prolific gift of rhyme wrapped in artistic sentiment, Sebb Bash’s injection of measured compositions strip back the noise, filtering a pensive to whimsical spectrum of music, allowing Elucid to unleash a treasure trove of gnarly bars. In an interview with Bandcamp Daily, the rapper briefly explained his partnership with the beatsmith, saying, “when I started vibing with Sebb, the production pushed me in that way. And also because things overlap, I don’t wanna do too much of the same thing”.

Bash’s inquiry into sound is evidently refreshing, retaining the essence of hip-hop through ostinato motifs, like on “Cantata” and “Hands n Feet”. It would be too obvious to label it experimental, but it’s deliberate, and works in tandem with Elucid’s vernacular patterns, especially when juxtaposed against his earlier work.

“Flip it a fast rate, mach speed (Zoom)
Maneuvers a Medici custom to shoot ketamine (Boom)
Seats in the mezzanine, clemency currency confidential
Carefully calculating our clever schemes” – Estee Nack

On the latter track, Estee Nack’s inclusion pushes the experience through an equilibrium of lyrical depth, and Hall raises the bar beyond the game he already brings. It’s enjoyable, creative, and against a wide spread of music, it can at times hit the nail on the head for some of its themes.

READ MORE: Xzibit, B-Real, and Demrick Release More Music

Shabaka Hutchings makes another appearance for the label, featuring on a creamy “Equiano”, where his instrumental expertise supports in stunning intervals.

No Backwoodz release is complete without a Billy Woods feature — which holds true on I Guess U Had To Be There. It’s often hip-hop’s descriptive language that lands with the most power, and that’s no different when the rapper interjects on “The Lorax”: “A wisp of cannabis smoke curl out the window of the whip/ Subtle how the wind shift”.

The Verdict

Ultimately, Elucid’s new album dominates through lyrical power (no surprise there), enhanced by Sebb Bash’s minimalist yet effusive compositions. While it linguistically arrives with superior wordplay, at times, banal rap stock idioms return, like on Make Me Wise and Fainting Goats, where the lyricist compares himself to an omnipresent being. However, for the most part, his abstract penmanship is thoroughly appreciated and much needed. Will we remember this? It’s impressive, but far from memorable.

Buy and Stream the Album

You can pick up a copy of the album on cassette, CD, and vinyl directly from the artist’s webstore. Alternatively,

Full Tracklist

1. First Light
2. Cantata
3. Hands n Feet (feat. Estee Nack)
4. Make Me Wise
5. Coonspeak
6. Equiano (feat. Shabaka Hutchings)
7. The Lorax (feat. billy woods)
8. Fainting Goats (feat. Breeze Brewin)
9. I Say Self
10. Visitation Place
11. Alive Herbals
12. Parental Advisory