by: Sun-J
Blueprint + RJD2 = Soul Position = dope. Jay Dee + Madlib = Jaylib = phat. Cage + Camu = Nighthawks = explosive. Madlib + MF Doom = Madvillainy = monumental. However, I have to be honest, I was not hip to the Danger Mouse and MF Doom collabo. Thank god for myspace. As I was browsing some attractive, yet slutty, coeds that annoying thing happened. If you are a myspace user you know EXACTLY what I am talking about. Without getting too much into myspace etiquette, I absolutely despise people who pack their pages with ridiculous, bandwidth-demanding pictures and music videos. Anyhow, not too long before I loaded bridgittesosweet's page did I start to hear the high pitched verses of my favorite emcee next to Slug, Ghostface Killah. Then I heard another familiar voice, that of MF Grimm's, or MF Doom's, or Viktor Vaughn, or whatever the F he is calling himself these days. I knew the production's drums was not Doom's style so I checked the embedded song playing and it was surprisingly Danger Doom. I immediately downloaded the album (*legally*) and enjoyed. I was further delighted by the incorporation of Adult Swim characters. What resulted from the Danger Mouse and MF Doom collaboration is fourteen tracks of funky instrumentation blended with amorphous lyricism courtesy of Doom. Danger Mouse must have done some serious crate digging deep into his 1970's collection along as filtered through outdated TV theme songs.The album opens with "El Chipa Nibre." Doom's flow is nothing short of absurd, however his monotone vocal pattern and knack for hilarious word combinations provide a very entertaining introduction: .. state your intentions "I really love your tape but I hate your inventions"
Very well - what you want, a brownie?
He took off the mask and whispered "Put me where you found me"
He kept his paper digits in a chunk
Once joined a rap click - midgets into crunk... The next track, "Sofa King" is the lead single from the album. Danger Mouse samples a very eerie violin loop, and laces it with a funky drum riff. The next song, "The Mask" features standout lyricism from Ghostface Killah:...a whole new identity, Toney Starks pedigree
My money green like my nickname was celery
Who is Ghost? He flashed his toast
Never wore sheets, but bulletproof coats... Danger Mouse provides a stroll-in-the-park instrumental on "Perfect Hair" while Cee-Lo contributes with a very catchy chorus on "Benzi Box," the standout track in my opinion. The heat continues with "Old School Rules" featuring Talib Kweli. Kweli's contribution to the track is artful and filled with tangential puns;Me and my friends break bread, sit and smoke
The conversation rich but that depends on what you consider broke
I draw on anything for inspiration
A fond memory, a piece of paper, walls in a train station As it's name indicates the instrumentation has a very old school feel while the lyricism by Doom and Kweli maintains a new school flow. Danger Mouse layers the instrumental's drums with trumpets and Rhode chords. "Basket Case" and "Bada Bing" are solid LP tracks, while Danger Mouse's production on "Crosshairs," "Mince Meat," and "Space Hoes" is absolutely amazing. "Crosshairs" sounds like a hip hop orchestra looped with a funky drum track and blues guitar chords. "Mince Meat" builds and climaxes with an east asian influenced sample while "Space Hoes" allows Doom's unique steez to blend well with the instrumentation.This album is one of the best of the years. As with all Doom albums, it does have a theme. The appearances by the Aqua Teen characters are not always integrated well, and sometimes can be annoying. For example I found the Meatwad's cover of Doom's "Beef Rapp" to be entertaining while most people are irked. However, it will serve as your best interest to give this album at least a gut-check. You can try before you buy if you go over to 3hive.
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