P&B brings you the "Dig On" Classic Album Series. We'll delve into our vaults to discuss the records that have profoundly impacted our musical tastes. The albums we present are considered essential to anyone's record collection. In the end, you can't understand the present (or future) until you "Dig On" the past.
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| (Photo via sweetmelissarecords.com) |
"Spot hot tracks like spot a pair of fat asses
Shots of the scotch from out of square shot glasses
And he won't stop 'til he got the masses
An' show 'em what they know now through flows of hot molasses"
- Lyrics from Madvillain's "ALL CAPS"
My introduction to Madvillain came via CMJ, the must read music magazine/bible for college radio stations, which I read when I was Music Director at CKDJ in Ottawa. My curiosity was tweaked thanks to a picture of a dude wearing a metal mask and the other with a do-rag. The reviews on "Madvillainy" were all decidedly positive. So there I was, the music guy who prides on knowing all that is "cool", puzzled as to why I hadn't picked up this album yet.
Madvillain consists of 2 major players in the underground hip hop scene: Madlib, the eclectic beat producers from California, and DOOM (known as MF DOOM up to 2009), the cunning lyricist from Long Island, New York. "Madvillainy" was released by Stones Throw records, a California based label founded and run by Peanut Butter Wolf, on March 23, 2004. The album took a few years to complete due to what they called "political" issues, which means DOOM was probably sitting on his ass taking his time. DOOM is notorious for walking to the beat of his own drum machine, as was expressed by a few artists he worked with in the past including Ghostface Killah.
Upon your first visit to the Madvillain Bistro Bed & Breakfast Bar & Grill Cafe Lounge underwater (where they offer you the finest in the finer things), the production grabs your attention. The beats and texture on the cuts are unconventional and, quite frankly, odd. Once past "The Illest Villain" instrumental, the beat for "Accordion" comes in strong with DOOM setting up the scene for what will be an interesting bit of underground hip hop theatre. The best way that I can describe Madlib's production style would be sloppy, but tight. His beats feel off by a fraction of a second, which is nothing but perception. Madlib knows the wonders of a metronome. It's all of the additional layers in his production that lend to this awareness and, in "Madvillainy"'s case, DOOM's idiosyncratic cadence and delivery.
DOOM was an underground hip hop head's emcee before Madvillainy hit the shelves. The success and positive reception of Madvillain's first effort put DOOM's name on the map. Compared to Mm..Food, which was available to the masses later that year on November 16, 2004, the Super Villain's lyrical content is darker, but in line with his trademark wittiness and sub/pop-culture references. His flow on this record is masterful and cunning at the same time. DOOM breaks away from the standard a-a-b-b delivery on numerous occasions. In some cases, entire verse sequences are matched with the same rhyme. This is a staple for DOOM's sound and has a lasting presence on Madvillainy. DOOM's lyrical themes range from the always favoured "I'm the dopest emcee" bravado and strange introspective insight on his alter-ego's imaginary life. As mentioned in this inaugural edition of "Dig On", his delivery is the masterful stroke that completes his tableau.
Madvillain was the perfect union of 2 underground heavy weights that released one of the best hip hop albums of the 2000s. Surprisingly, the album's run time is only 46 minutes over 22 tracks. The longest song is "Rhinestone Cowboy" coming in at 4:02 to conclude the album. The songs are at a perfect length to keep a listener's attention to its fullest. They are quick and diverse as you take a deep dive to the bottom. This albums sounds fresh to this day so you could say that it was ahead of its time. Unorthodox and incredible, Madvillain's "Madvillainy" has set a standard for indie and mainstream hip hop excellence and, for a period, everyone was watching this throne. Madvillain are hip hop royalty and can only be knocked off their summit by their highly anticipated (and delayed) new record.
Dig On These Tracks:
- Accordion
- Meat Grinder
- Money Folder
- ALL CAPS
- Figaro
- Rhinestone Cowboy
-Paqman
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| (Photo via stonesthrow.com) |
Madvillain consists of 2 major players in the underground hip hop scene: Madlib, the eclectic beat producers from California, and DOOM (known as MF DOOM up to 2009), the cunning lyricist from Long Island, New York. "Madvillainy" was released by Stones Throw records, a California based label founded and run by Peanut Butter Wolf, on March 23, 2004. The album took a few years to complete due to what they called "political" issues, which means DOOM was probably sitting on his ass taking his time. DOOM is notorious for walking to the beat of his own drum machine, as was expressed by a few artists he worked with in the past including Ghostface Killah.
Upon your first visit to the Madvillain Bistro Bed & Breakfast Bar & Grill Cafe Lounge underwater (where they offer you the finest in the finer things), the production grabs your attention. The beats and texture on the cuts are unconventional and, quite frankly, odd. Once past "The Illest Villain" instrumental, the beat for "Accordion" comes in strong with DOOM setting up the scene for what will be an interesting bit of underground hip hop theatre. The best way that I can describe Madlib's production style would be sloppy, but tight. His beats feel off by a fraction of a second, which is nothing but perception. Madlib knows the wonders of a metronome. It's all of the additional layers in his production that lend to this awareness and, in "Madvillainy"'s case, DOOM's idiosyncratic cadence and delivery.
DOOM was an underground hip hop head's emcee before Madvillainy hit the shelves. The success and positive reception of Madvillain's first effort put DOOM's name on the map. Compared to Mm..Food, which was available to the masses later that year on November 16, 2004, the Super Villain's lyrical content is darker, but in line with his trademark wittiness and sub/pop-culture references. His flow on this record is masterful and cunning at the same time. DOOM breaks away from the standard a-a-b-b delivery on numerous occasions. In some cases, entire verse sequences are matched with the same rhyme. This is a staple for DOOM's sound and has a lasting presence on Madvillainy. DOOM's lyrical themes range from the always favoured "I'm the dopest emcee" bravado and strange introspective insight on his alter-ego's imaginary life. As mentioned in this inaugural edition of "Dig On", his delivery is the masterful stroke that completes his tableau.
 |
| (Photo via stonesthrow.com) |
Dig On These Tracks:
- Accordion
- Meat Grinder
- Money Folder
- ALL CAPS
- Figaro
- Rhinestone Cowboy
-Paqman
Great album, looking forward to the rest of these classic reviews.
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