soudvsystem x Beans

Photo credit: Lauren Hillary Clune

Beans has a lot to say. Known for his solo work and as a founding member of the experimental Hip Hop group Antipop Consortium, the artist/poet has a rich catalog. His latest album ZWAARD, a collaboration with the electronic producer Vladislav Delay, works as a sort of manifesto. An analysis of past actions, ZWAARD contains personal details, while also thinking ahead. Vladislav Delay, the moniker of the Sasu Ripatti, creates glitchy electronic soundscapes that go head to head with Beans’ flow. 

It would be easy for an artist to get swallowed up by Ripatti’s beats. On the opening track “ZWAARD 1” we get a glimpse of Beans thinking about his legacy. “When I die / bury my ashes when pressing up the vinyl of my latest release so I can die as I lived / creatively,” he says over the uneven thumps of a kick drum. He goes in and out of synch dodging the unexpected punches of the beats. On “ZWAARD 4” we get a sense of recollection and prevision through his prose. “Spent most of my adult life on mics since 17 / excel words / been doing that superb / with growl and gusto / futurist  / plant seeds for trees to grow / under shades that I'll never know,” he raps. On ZWAARD Beans is untouchable. 

We asked Beans to curate a playlist of the songs that influenced ZWAARD. Read our Q&A with Beans and learn more about his picks. Scroll down to listen to the full playlist.

Congrats on ZWAARD! The way your words ease in and out over these Vladislav Delay productions creates a magical dynamic. The two of you had talked about working together years ago, but it wasn’t until after 2020 that it happened. How did that come about?

Ohh, word. Thank you very much for saying that. The whole thing started after I dropped this record, Venga, and Sasu reached out to me on Twitter/X and it snowballed from there. Originally when we started talking about working on things years ago, it was supposed to be an EP for APC, but the closest that came to happening was “ZWAARD_Over.” The first intention was for Sasu and I to start a group called ZWAARD. Then as the album developed, it became a solo Beans album. The whole process of the writing took a minute. ZWAARD started with the first 4 songs setting the pace over a summer and the rest of the tracks came together gradually over a years time. I was also working on another record simultaneously that's about to come out later this year called HARROWER which is about to be mixed soon. ZWAARD almost came out in February, but the date changed to March and here we all are. People seem to be digging it so I'm very grateful for that. I like this record. 

On “ZWAARD 2” there’s a line where you rap: “I won’t make music to make listening purposely harder or any easier.” Listening to your work over the years, you’ve leaned into more experimental sounds. Was that a conscious decision or something that happened organically?

As I get older, I have less fear of trying things. I mean, I never really did but as I get older, I keep thinking more about what I am leaving behind. I want my work to be a reflection of where I am at the moment said in the most interesting ways. As an MC, I still want to spit and as a writer, I want to get my pen off. As an artist, I just want to meet challenges creatively where I can set goals to achieve which results in becoming a better me. 

“ZWAARD 11" features a sample of Marcel Duchamp talking about art’s ability to elicit individuality. How do you think your artistry has evolved over the years? 

Duchamp and the surrealists, particularly Matta, are an influence on me so I thought his voice fitting to use for the record. All my life I’ve always been very individualistic in my approach to how I choose to express myself. When I was coming up, I got a lot more discouraging pushback on what was or wasn’t going to work. To be honest, I still get the pushback but I’m in my bag and people’s responses to this latest completed work are validation of that fortitude. 

The work development lies more in me forging ahead on the path that I set for myself and being able to put myself in a position to explore my voice further. My main motivation comes from witnessing Hip Hop in its infancy during the golden ‘88 era when the music was new and everybody who made a name for themselves took chances. It was diverse and everybody was Hip Hop but it wasn’t homogeneous. It was refreshing and every release was a new experience. That’s more of what I want to continue to explore for myself. 

“ZWAARD_OVER” sees the return of APC. What was it like working together again after so many years?

A lot has happened in those 12 years apart as I’ve continued to release music and expand on my voice. I moved out of NY with the fam, step pops passed, got 2 cats, and the kids grew. Before we recorded anything, APC was having Zoom meetings every Sunday for 2 years. The plan was always to do something and “ZWAARD_Over” just happened to be the first thing out. The lineup of the group since the song was released has changed again. As a group, one full-length is done and being mixed currently and another album will be worked on over the summer. APC will be doing some shows before the new releases that are on the way.

You’ve got some dates lined up across the EU/UK in April. What are you looking forward to the most on this upcoming tour?

It’s been a minute but what I hope to happen is to have a blast performing and reestablish myself to come back overseas again repeatedly. I'd rather get paid in euros.

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Julius Eastman - “Evil N*gg*r”

I guess at the end of the day, I feel an affinity for both of these artists [Eastman & Jacqueline Thibault] because they both are underrated savants that weren't widely regarded in their lifetimes. Julius Eastman, minimalist avant-garde composer and pianist, spent the end of his life homeless living in Tompkins Square Park then later died penniless on the streets of New York.

Jacqueline Thibault - “Catalepsie”

Jacqueline Thibault, an engineer, producer, and multi instrumentalist, to this day remains grossly ignored and in order to get her music released, she had to perform under the male pseudonym Laurance Vanay while signed to shitty record deals as her career was plagued by mismanagement and gender discrimination.

My attachment to these innovative, progressive geniuses exceeds their collective miseries as both of these artists share a commonality with each other as each artist makes very personal compositions that are extremely unique unto themselves. I alternated my listening between both of their work throughout the year during the writing of ZWAARD consistently finding renewed inspiration in their recordings upon repeated listens.

Marvin Gaye - I Want You

This is one of the greatest albums EVER made. It's PERFECT!!! I Want You, the fourteenth album by Marvin Gaye & produced by Leon Ware, is my barometer for sequencing, production, and how to put together a record. In my eyes, this album is my recurring listening virus that can do no wrong.

Ornette Coleman & London Symphony Orchestra - Skies of America

THIS 1972 album with the London Symphony Orchestra gives me life! Ornette made such a bold statement with The Shape of Jazz to Come at the time of his debut. Where he took his work after that genre blasting debut is simply astounding. THIS is the main inspiration that I draw from his work and the parallels I strive to achieve with my own material to always keep moving forward.

My favorite album by Ornette and his most influential to me album that's not listed is his 1971 release, Science Fiction.

Max Roach - “Members Don't Get Weary”

Not as sonically ambitious as Skies in America, nor should it be, but this 1968 album by Max Roach is nothing to sneeze at either. I used to listen to this album a lot during the writing process of ZWAARD when I was trying to figure out a direction to take lyrically. I think best to an instrumental that's not necessarily the track I'm working on. I found this particular record calming, especially while I was driving to pick up the youngest from school. A bar might come to me while I'm driving or cleaning the house which happens often when I'm not thinking about it. This record gave me tons of clarity. Thanks a mil, Max.

Paul Desmond - From The Hot Afternoon

Another smoothed out joint that kept the pistons running. Trust me, this album and the previously mentioned, Members Don't Get Weary, are both best played doing nothing or cleaning the house on a Sunday. 

Ruth White - “Flowers from Hell”

Tobacco from Black Moth Super Rainbow and his missus, Maux, are my missus and I couple friends. We hang out, go on vacations, museums, and try out new restaurants in our respective areas. When we were both signed to Anticon and went on tour together, Tobacco put me on to this record. He played this record when we were in a van in the dead of night driving down a dirt road with no lights and in the midst of thick fog. The setting alone against the backdrop of this record gave me Scooby Doo horror vibes. Very haunting, pun intended!

Rome Streetz - “Kiss the Ring”

Stellar debut on Griselda ever since I first heard him on DJ Muggs and his collaborative record, Death and the Magician. Grisalda stay gold!

Armani Caesar - The Liz 2

She's a dope MC that doesn't get mentioned enough. Liz 2 was a big departure from her last record and the beats on this one go crazy! Again, Griselda. I could do a whole list on Griselda joints alone. When it comes to Hip Hop, they who I mostly listen to. If it ain't broke, right...

John Cale and Terry Riley - Church of Anthrax

This shit is MURDA!!!!

Eddie Gale - Eddie Gale's Ghetto Music

The debut masterpiece of trumpeter Eddie Gale is another monster from 1968 that provides endless inspiration along with the next joint listed below.

Freddie Hubbard - Sing Me A Song Of Songmy

Released again in my birth year of 1971, Son My gets its title from a reference to a mass murder committed in Vietnam of 400 civilians murdered, raped, and slaughtered by the US Army put to musique concrete, poetry, and free jazz. A HUGE influence on the kid. Both H and I are BEAST records!!!

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ZWAARD is out now via Tygr Rawwk Rcrds. The album can be streamed on Spotify and other platforms. Follow Beans on Instagram. Go see Beans live in EU:

Apr. 5 - The Hague, NL @ Rewire
Apr. 6, Brussels, BE @ Brdcst
Apr. 7 - Geneva, CH @ Cave 12
Apr. 9 - Dijon, FR @ la Vapeur
Apr. 10 - Zürich CH @ Umbo
Apr. 13 - Pisa, IT @ Caracol
Apr. 14 - Fano, IT @ Bagni Elsa
Apr. 17 - Edinburgh, UK @ Old Lab
Apr. 19 - London, UK @ Cafe Oto
Apr. 20 - Dublin, IE @ The Workman’s Cellar