Disco de MF Doom: “OPERATION: DOOMSDAY (Complete)”

This is the Independent equivalent of NAS - Illmatic as MF Doom literally grabs a microphone and a tape deck and creates an album that has all the evidence that it was done in his bedroom. It has clips from everything from a `Speak and Spell' to the Fantastic 4 cartoon (a nod to Ghostface Killah - Supreme Clientele use of Ironman) before the hip-hop kicks in with some great beats and background vocals, there is something about MF Doom's voice and lyrics that catches you when he matches the beats almost perfectly and can hold for break-beats right on cue and then spins his rap around the tunes in ways that really haven't been done before elsewhere. 'Tick Tick' is one of the strangest hip-hop tunes ever conceived but when you hear the way he can rap with those kind of beat changes every second or so is just amazing. MF Doom really is a very ill indie hip-hop talent that will surprise any mainstream listener. MF Doom is very popular with seasoned hip-hop enjoyers and it is not hard to see why. The pulsation that is Operation Doom is one of the best albums you can have in any album collection let alone a 'best of' Hip-Hop collection. It also remains highly arty in its overall form. This is important and hip-hop subgenre defining stuff stuff. Truly musical and with tons of heart and a mind to do something original and new. Wow.

classic material from one of the most influential and innovative emcees ever. the combination of an industry and fans asleep and very bad luck has mf doom only now catching fire.

first seen and heard on the video/single for third bass's "gas face", daniel dumile ,aka zev luv x formed kmd (kausin' much damage) back in the early 90's. kmd has some hits like "mr. hood" and was poised to step into the conscious niche then inhabited by tribe called quest and brand nubian. then the trouble - elektra freaked about his "sambo" cover art for the next release "bl_ck b_st_rds", a fight ensued with kmd dropped from the label. 2 days later, zev's twin brother was killed in a car accident.

emerging from that wreckage as mf doom, the super villian, this amazing body of work, operation: doomsday is created. joints such as "?" and "i hear voices" are intelligent standouts. there is a animated video that is dope for the "voices" cut as well.

definately support this record - it possitive, important, fun, bangin' and might just maybe, reclaim hip-hop from the disease of wackness - big ups to sub verse music for recognizing this.

**NOTE** YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THIS ENTIRE ALBUM ON EMUSIC.COM LEGALLY. They are a subscriber site but right now (August 2004) they are running a promotion of 50 free song downloads upfront but you still need a credit card.

Okay now about the album. I heard DOOM first on the Madvillain album he did with Madlib. I have been a Madlib fan for a while now because of the authentic jazz flavor and unpolished genius of his production, and I heard some of those same qualities in DOOM's rapping. His style is strikingly unique; it is sprinkled with trite cliches and irrelevant combinations of words that seem to be included merely for the way they sound (in a way kind of like Radiohead lyrics). His verses run on with a refreshing lack of hooks and an improvisational flowing quality that mesh perfectly with his ambitious soul chillout-style beats.

Operation Doomsday, as an album, disregarding its style, might be considered a less than stellar fair. The sound is kind of uneven and some of the cuts are pretty rough, but everything it lacks gives it more appeal. It sounds like something straight out of the basement of some MCs from the early 90s. It's pretty lo fi and all the rappers, DOOM especially, sound so hungry. For those that discovered Madvillain first, it will be noticed that he sounds a lot less calm here.

Some tracks really stand out...Rhymes Like Dimes, Doomsday, Go With the Flow, Gas Drawls...but most of them are great. Tick Tick is really interesting because it keeps slowing down and speeding up. And none of the guests artists are wack. The cartoony interludes are kind of clever and funny, but I've never been a big fan of interludes. But all in all, it's very refreshing to hear this new take on rap music from the enigmatic supervillain; the raw and retro feeling of this ablum is an excellent break from the norm.

If you like DOOM, check out his aliases King Geedorah, Viktor Vaughn, and Madvillain.

Many moons ago, during the time hip hop was just loosing their baby teeth, KMD came out with a revolutionary album, Black Bastards. However, with the backlash from the political correctness movement, the idea of a cartoon black man getting hung on the front of an album was... unacceptable at best. Yikes! Black Bastards, despite a fast-growing popularity, is pulled from the shelves. Members SubRoc was killed in a car accident and associate Grimm Reaper was shot, putting SubRoc in the grave and Grimm Reaper in a wheelchair for life. Zev Love X disappears, seemingly just as dead as his cohorts.

Now, for the comic geeks - compare the story of Dr. Doom, a gypsy that was hunted as a child, his mother and father killed. His genius shines through and he manages to travel to the US to go to Harvard, despite the odds. As he's working on his doctorate, he designs a device that will allow him to contact the dead, but things go horribly wrong and he's terribly scarred by the accident.

Zev Love X = Dr. Doom. If this album and MF (Metal Face) Doom was just a good concept, though, I certainly wouldn't be writing this review. It's like a Who's Who of underground rappers from New York, like Kurious, MF Grimm (Grimm Reaper returns!), Rodan from the Monster Island Czars and Pebbles the Invisible. If you're a fan of Fondle 'Em or Definite Jux, this is a real treat. If you're not, you're missing out.

Intelligent songwriting, incredible samples and music with messages other than 'bling bling,' yet not disconnected from the street scene. Goofy, underproduced, sometimes angry - but quite possibly the last great hip hop album of last millenium.

- REVIEW

MF Doom certaintly made his name in the Rap industry, thanks to the devoided cult and Adult_Swim following. His status is recognizable enough for him to produce a Ghostface Killah album. Back then, however, MF Doom is just an image, and the man behind the mask wanted to expose his alter ego to the streets and pave way for a villanous sound that fears the community, while boppin' their heads. With his ambition, he made a raw, unconventional LP called "Operation: Doomsday." Marketing-wise, his dominating first scheme to enslave us with his music is of little success, and with the intellectual property against him, his sales were miniscule and only the "unfortunate" few can grasp his reign before the value of the plan became higher than it should. No surprise since this album is unconditionally underground.

The first time I hear of Doom's whole operation, I was very impressive. MF Doom can hold on his own as a nemesis, a rapper, and a music producer, not to mentioned his geek-like persona. His freestylin' attitude voids of choruses in any of the tracks, with the exception of "Tick Tick." Throughout the album, MF Doom and his cohorts does nothing but spit the mic without interruption. His choice of samples are also impressive. To put it simply, the samples are odd, but they are strangely addictive.

"Tick Tick" is definitely one of the most unique tracks I hear in Hip-Hop. The music constantly increases and decreases the tempo in a wavelength pattern, or as he calls it, "Speed it up, slow 'em up, speed it up, slow 'em up." MF Doom should be applauded for his ability to catch up with the changing music tempo while he's rapping. Because of the unique pacing of the song, it took me a while to get used to the sound, but when it hits me, it works. Not really one of my favorite tracks, but it's definitely an interesting one.

There's plenty of the devious good developments in the album. I'm all for the mixes with concrete sounds, which is why some of great ones are the vile sounds of "Go With The Flow", the retro influence of "Red and Blue," and the R&B vibe of "Operation: Greenbacks" "Who Do You Think I Am?" is a collab with different artists that stands out thanks to the fast-paced beats and Kung Fu-familiar backgrounds. The only bad track in the album is "Hey!": nothin' wrong lyrically, but the song is just dull.

As good as his maniacal scheme is, Doom needed to know how to make a proper closure. Most of the songs like "Doomsday" ended longer than it needs to, thanks to the filler that occurs when the rapper stops raisin' his voice. Doom, when you stop spittin' the mic in a track, you can't leave the background runnin' for a minute, even though I'm into the music more than the lyrics; learn to fade in when you're done. I don't mind random sound clips from superhero cartoons in songs like "I Hear Voices", but when they go on and on, they ended up feelin' bloated.

"Operation: Doomsday" is a solid debut album, but no one should pay five times the amount for a CD; that's just plain evil, even for Doom. Not to mention it's that much for a music CD that has its own imperfections. Though the only less-costly chance to get this album is something the RIAA is against, it's worth it if you like freestylin' hip-hop. Hey, you could also be lucky and find the album at a cheap price.

This is Del Keyes, saying "Don't let price-gouching get in the way of good hip-hop."

[DEL'S FAVORITE TRACKS]

- "Rhymes Like Dimes"

- "Go With the Flow"

- "Red and Blue"

- "Who Do You Think I Am?"

- "Operation: Greenbacks"