DOOM - Born Like This

Rating: 7.7
Released: March 24, 2009
Label: Lex



MF DOOM (or just DOOM, now, apparently) has consistently proven himself to be one of the most exciting underground rappers around, most notably on his Madlib collaboration Madvillainy. As such, news of any new album from DOOM is an event (especially when it turns out that the album actually will be released, which is often not the case, unfortunately). Born Like This, luckily for us, in fact does exist, and is another worthwhile entry in the DOOM catalogue.

The album gets off to a bit of a shaky start, with a rather pedestrian intro that transitions abruptly in “Gazzillion Ear.” As the song progresses, however, DOOM’s trademark flow settles comfortably on top of the eerie beat. It sounds exactly like what you would expect from DOOM, but he’s so good at what he does that it’s still worth hearing. As for his rapping, it’s as goofily bizarre as always. Lines like “later for the date than the Hadron Collider” (in the midst of self-promotion, no less) give the song some refreshing self-deprecating humor.

Born Like This is rife with highlights, such as “Yessir!,” which features a fabulous performance by Raekwon that gives me hope for his upcoming sequel to Only Built 4 Cuban Linx. The beat is insistent and dissonant, perfectly augmenting the rapping. Elsewhere, on “That’s That,” DOOM gives us one of the very best songs of his storied career, and, on “Angelz,” crying strings and emotive horns set the stage for a great guest appearance by Tony Starks (Ghostface Killah).

Unfortunately, for all the great music on Born Like This, at seventeen tracks, it can’t avoid some filler sneaking its way in. The worst offender is the pointless spoken word track, “Bumpy’s Message” (which isn’t a “song” at all). “Lightworks” is also a miss, as it tries to do too much and simply feels cluttered as a result. The ideas for a great song are there, but the sirens used in the beat give the song no room to breathe. The transitions between the songs, as well as almost all of the spoken samples, are annoying as well. The samples that reference villains and their plans are a DOOM trademark, but all they do here is distract from the actual music.

Despite these flaws, Born Like This stands up as a solid album. The songs are fairly diverse, and the rapping is great throughout, even when the beats fail (which itself only happens on occasion). It’s not revolutionary, and it’s not a landmark, but it is yet another solid album from DOOM. If he can put together another album on the level of the best work here, he’ll easily produce another classic. For now, this album is definitely worthwhile.


-Pnoom

The Phantom Band - Checkmate Savage

Rating: 8.4
Released: January 2009
Label: Chemikal Underground



Though it’s only March (and early March at that), 2009 has already seen what will surely be one of the best debuts of the year in The Phantom Band’s Checkmate Savage. It’s a snarling beast of an album, but it’s also beautiful. Take the opener, “The Howling,” which builds off a pounding bass and drum (mostly bass) groove that gives it irrepressible energy. Despite this distinctly rock foundation, the vocal melodies recall the Midwestern sound of bands such as Fleet Foxes and My Morning Jacket, albeit without the harmonies (which would simply be needless clutter in a setting like this).

What this does is allow the band to work within a big, expansive sound without feeling loose. Instead, everything feels impeccably tight (most of the time). The grooves are crisp and to the point, forming the foundation of most of the songs on Checkmate Savage. The band works around these grooves excellently, building atmosphere and providing memorable melodies without losing sight of the end goal. Even the riffs often feel simply like a part of these grooves, such as on album highlight “Folk Song Oblivion.” It is when the band most emphasizes the pure power of their music, even when they do so by pitting it against gentler vocals, that they are best, as seen on the succinct and altogether excellent “Halfhound.”

Conversely, where the album falters (which is a rare occurrence) is where the band loses focus and begins to meander. This is most apparent on the nearly nine-minute “Island,” which goes on and on, seemingly endlessly, even though the ideas from which it’s built are on par (or nearly so) with those from the other songs on the album (the main melody is actually quite gorgeous and one of my favorites on the album). Thankfully, this is a rare problem, as most of the album is concise and focused.

Though this is a debut effort, it often feels honed to near perfection, displaying uncannily mature songwriting throughout. It has some slight missteps, but Checkmate Savage is a stellar album, firmly establishing The Phantom Band as one of the most exciting new acts as we head towards a new decade.


-Pnoom