Doomtree - False hopes XV

It may surprise some of you, but I was a hip-hop kid before getting into punk-rock, which later led me to all the soft or hard stuff I listen to now. I still keep an eye on the hip-hop scene and one of the labels that has attracted my attention the most in the last years is Minneapolis crew Doomtree. Close friends with the fellow Minnesota label Rhymesayers Entertainment (Atmosphere, MF Doom, Brother Ali...), they're a hip-hop collective creating music as solo artists or as a whole crew. Besides their two full-length albums, the crew has released fourteen 'False hopes' mixtapes that were solo or duo contributions whereas this fifteenth one is the result of the work of almost all the artists together (seven out of nine are here: the five MCs and two of the producers).

First, don't run away thinking the rap stuff I choose to review on here sounds like guys around a swimming-pool with half-naked girls and half-empty champagne bottles. It doesn't. I like good rap, okay? If some of you need to be reassured, Doomtree is known for the influence of punk in their music. P.O.S., the most popular rapper of the crew, is famous for making "hip-hop for people who don't like hip-hop". He will cite Minor Threat and Refused as influences, he plays drums in a hardcore band, he is among the few rap artists to be on the Warped Tour, he has toured with many rock acts, from Saosin to Cursive, he has worked with guys from The Hold Steady and Bouncing Souls and his latest record ('Never better', my rap album of the year) features samples and references to Fugazi and Isis. If this long name-dropping didn't convince you the guy isn't 50 Cent, I give up.
So it is not a surprise for me that my favorite song on the EP is his, 'Do not stay'. After a moving piano-driven intro, the track gets into a superb three and a half-minute hip-hop moment, with an excellent production by Lazerbeak. P.O.S. proves his songwriting skills one more time but the guy can also provide good beatss as the punk-ish instrumental on female rapper Dessa's song 'Scuffle' comes from him. The song, dark and different, shows off the talent of the vitriolic MC. She is with no doubt one of the most promising girls in today's hip-hop scene. Openers 'Coup for the king' and 'Profit and loss' are more classical, in the vein of the entusiastic tunes off the crew's past full-lengths. They're a good demonstration of what the gang can do though, all of its members being at their best. The very intellectual Cecil Otter imposes his signature flow and complexed lyrics with 'A rickety bridge' ("Well, as soon as you got out from the aim of the sniper / You took a rest next to the fangs of a viper / But it's raining tonight for you / I know you love the rain, I watched you drink it up and strike another flame / When you came to show your face to the animals / Who swore it was intangible to orchestrate a radical / I saw your eyes go from lowercase to capital / It's like you had to pull the rogue from underneath yourself to feel alive"... Yeah, you will definitely not find him "in the club, bottle full of Bub") and the great Mike Mictlan plays the somber card on 'OMG!', a beautiful song with deep lyrical content, lots of piano on its verses and a guitar solo and scratches on its chorus. The record closes on 'Carped diem', the longest track, compltely instrumental. Somber as well, almost post-rock in its approach, jazzy because including saxophone, the loop featuring plenty of instrument samples is a very well-executed way to finish the listen.

'False hopes XV' is a good introduction to Doomtree for those who are curious to discover the crew. It's a solid yet short (it's only an EP and doesn't go further than the 30-minute mark) joint effort from the very creative and talented collective, showcasing what each one of its members can do but also proving the future is wide open for them. Indeed, certain songs on there are some of the finest composed by the group. Doomtree isn't about "niggas" and "bitches". Don't be scared, give it a try. "Don't sweat the technique fellas, Doomtree's better!"

4/5

Nb.: You can listen to the EP here.

Recommanded if you like:
Atmosphere, Blakroc, P.O.S.
Check also:
Mike Mictlan & Lazerbeak, Paper Tiger, Mac Lethal

www.myspace.com/doomtree

(Doomtree Records, 2009)