DOOM – BORN LIKE THIS (LEX RECORDS)
At first I didn’t really pay any mind to the latest MF Doom incarnation but then suddenly I was hit with the track “Cellz” which opens with a Charles Bukowski reading of his poem “Dinosauria, We” and quite frankly it sounds as if the world is ending. This is my kind of music.
For years I have never been able to work out how come Marvel Comics haven’t sued a large part of the hip-hop community into oblivion. What we have here is quite obviously the arch nemesis of the Fantastic Four had he chose rhymes over world domination. Perhaps Marvel takes it as a compliment, perhaps the slight changes in persona/identity (i.e. MF Doom instead of Dr Doom) keeps things far enough away from copyright infringement to be safe. Running on the same theme Ghostface Killah pops up as Tony Starks and NOT Tony Stark. It’s a fine line between stupid and genius.
This is a street album viewed through the escapism of being a superhero. It is both dark and respectful; playing out beats, rhymes and tunes in a classic manner. Delivered as a running narrative over seventeen tracks the content of Doom is now darker than ever as all concepts become bleaker. I say it is seventeen tracks but being in such a format many of these are bridging verses caked in minimal rhymes and disorientating samples, six of the tracks indeed fail to even reach two minutes in length.
There is a healthy dose of golden age TV referencing/nostalgia, not least on “Angelz” featuring Tony Starks/Ghostface Killah who appears to be reading the television listings from 1978 before tearing into a big sexy description of his Charlie’s Angels. Raekwon also makes a fleeting appearance on “Yessir!” (which in another era may have been the lead single) but the pick of the guest spots/slots comes from Empress Sharhh on the gorgeous “Still Dope” which with its glory hole loop/sample serves as a prime affirmation. The other standout track is “Absolutely” with its laidback destruction via minimal beats and heavy crackles that make things feel like 1994 once more.
Overall it’s a pretty solid record, if not a perfect one, the superhero samples, old skool beats and trademark MF Doom rhymes (mouth too close to the mic, few stops for breath, all smashed out direct in a very straight line) make for one great episodic adventure.
Thesaurus moment: marvel.
Doom
Lex Records
At first I didn’t really pay any mind to the latest MF Doom incarnation but then suddenly I was hit with the track “Cellz” which opens with a Charles Bukowski reading of his poem “Dinosauria, We” and quite frankly it sounds as if the world is ending. This is my kind of music.
For years I have never been able to work out how come Marvel Comics haven’t sued a large part of the hip-hop community into oblivion. What we have here is quite obviously the arch nemesis of the Fantastic Four had he chose rhymes over world domination. Perhaps Marvel takes it as a compliment, perhaps the slight changes in persona/identity (i.e. MF Doom instead of Dr Doom) keeps things far enough away from copyright infringement to be safe. Running on the same theme Ghostface Killah pops up as Tony Starks and NOT Tony Stark. It’s a fine line between stupid and genius.
This is a street album viewed through the escapism of being a superhero. It is both dark and respectful; playing out beats, rhymes and tunes in a classic manner. Delivered as a running narrative over seventeen tracks the content of Doom is now darker than ever as all concepts become bleaker. I say it is seventeen tracks but being in such a format many of these are bridging verses caked in minimal rhymes and disorientating samples, six of the tracks indeed fail to even reach two minutes in length.
There is a healthy dose of golden age TV referencing/nostalgia, not least on “Angelz” featuring Tony Starks/Ghostface Killah who appears to be reading the television listings from 1978 before tearing into a big sexy description of his Charlie’s Angels. Raekwon also makes a fleeting appearance on “Yessir!” (which in another era may have been the lead single) but the pick of the guest spots/slots comes from Empress Sharhh on the gorgeous “Still Dope” which with its glory hole loop/sample serves as a prime affirmation. The other standout track is “Absolutely” with its laidback destruction via minimal beats and heavy crackles that make things feel like 1994 once more.
Overall it’s a pretty solid record, if not a perfect one, the superhero samples, old skool beats and trademark MF Doom rhymes (mouth too close to the mic, few stops for breath, all smashed out direct in a very straight line) make for one great episodic adventure.
Thesaurus moment: marvel.
Doom
Lex Records
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