We Don't Even Live Here

by P.O.S.

I've been a fan of POS for years - since I first heard him on Audition, his second album, and I am constantly impressed with the way he refines and refocuses his vision and his approach to each new project.

We Don't Even Live Here, his fourth solo album, is a very tight shot across the bow of the zeitgeist.  This is a post-Occupy album, which has Stef stating plainly his position on 'stuff', and the materialism and greed of North American culture.

At first, it seems that Stef is good and pissed off throughout the album, but I don't think that's really true.  I find it clear that he doesn't like where things are going, and he's refusing to accept it, but I don't hear a lot of anger in his tone - it's more like frustration.

Stef uses this album to call a lot of groups out.  'Bumper' the fantastic opening track, contains a screed against clueless rappers who continue to support the money-making aspects of music to the detriment of using their voice to spread a message.  'F*** Your Stuff' could be a post-Occupy anthem, as he proudly proclaims his freedom from materialism.  The beautiful 'How We Land', featuring Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, mourns the ease with which people accept things they don't like as inevitable.

Other tracks continue these themes of self-reliance and change from below.  There are tracks with titles like 'Lock-Picks, Knives, Bricks and Bats', 'Fire in the Hole/Arrow to the Action', and 'Wanted/Wasted', which all neatly sum up Stef's position.

POS continues to be a stunningly talented lyricist, and he is joined on this album by Doomtree crewmates Sims and Mike Mictlan, as well as his Marijuana Deathsquads bandmate Isaac Gale, and rapper Astronautalis.  Production wise, this album is fuzzier than his last, with beats by Stef and his usual Doomtree collaborators Lazerbeak and Cecil Otter, but also by new collaborators Andrew Dawson, Patric Russel, Ryan Olson, Housemeister, and Boys Noize.

This is easily one of my favourite albums of the year.  It's hard not to listen to it and think about Stef's current medical predicament.  If you are interested in supporting one of the truest voices in hip-hop, and an all-round great person, head over here to do you part, or learn more.

No Kings

by Doomtree


No Kings is the second full-crew album from the Doomtree collective, and is their most collaborative project yet.

Whereas on their previous, self-titled album, most of the songs followed the usual convention of having a single producer providing the beat for anywhere from one to five emcees, this album blurs the lines between the various roles, giving the entire package an organic feel.

The credits for many of these tracks list three producers, as usual producer Lazerbeak works with Cecil Otter, POS, with Paper Tiger showing up for the awesome closer 'Fresh New Trash'.  Otter has a few solo beats as well, which is nice to see.  There is a much heavier rock influence on this album, but this is still a raw hip-hop beast.

Lyrically, the crew is reaching new heights.  There seems to be a lot of Sims on this album, but the credits are nicely balanced between him, Otter, Mike Mictlan, Dessa, and POS.  This is not a group that has any weak links (how many other rap groups of this size can say the same?  Not even Wu-Tang), but it is Dessa and POS who elevate each track they're on to the next level.

Stand-out tracks include the opener 'No Way', which has an amazing hook, and 'Beacon' (for Dessa).  My drop-dead favourite is the infectious 'Bangarang', which is the partiest track Doomtree has ever released.  This is a terrific album from one of the best, and most slept on, groups in hip-hop today.

Bad Time Zoo

by Sims

When I saw Doomtree perform here back in December, there was some mention of the fact that Sims had traveled to Nepal (it could have been Tibet, but that seems unlikely) to study Buddhism before starting work on this new album.  Whatever the degree of truth to that story may be, there is definitely a more spiritual aspect to Sim's lyrics on this, his second full-length album.

The songs on here are pretty political (even for a Doomtree record), as Sims talks about globalization, liberal guilt and self-delusion, and consumer culture.  He's not particularly angry on this disk, and is coming at things from a more philosophical and observational standpoint than anything else.

Musically, the album is very nice.  Lazerbeak produces all but the hidden track at the end (which is done by Cecil Otter), so there is a strong sense of consistency here.  Perhaps too much though.  The only guest appearance is by POS, and that's on the fourth track.  Somewhere towards the last third of the album, I always find myself hoping someone else is going to show up on a track, just to switch things up a bit.  Sims is a very capable rapper on his own, but I find I get a little tired of just hearing him.

That said, when all of the tracks on this disk are transferred to my ipod, I know each of them will be a nice surprise when they show up in shuffle mode.

False Hopes Fifteen

by Doomtree

Anyone who checks this blog regularly knows how much I love the Doomtree crew, so the release of the latest in the 'False Hopes' series of ep's was greated with great excitement. It's only 8 tracks in length, but it is a terrific sampling of the group's personalities and talents.

It opens with a nice intro from Paper Tiger before heading in to a couple of bangers - 'Coup for the Kings' by Sims and POS, with Lazerbeak on beats, and 'Profit & Loss', a recession-themed posse cut featuring the whole crew.

Cecil Otter's 'A Rickety Bridge' is your standard Otter poetic gold, and 'Scuffle' has me looking forward to Dessa's solo album, which should be arriving this week or next. POS and Mictlan get a solo track each in 'Do Not Stay' and 'OMG!' (respectively), showcasing their strengths. The ep ends with Otter's instrumental 'Carpe Diem', a lovely, almost drum'n'bass track.

This is a good way to spend a half hour, and a perfect sampler for anyone thinking about checking out Doomtree. Now I want more though...

False Hopes XIV

by Sims

Sims comes off as the most optimistic and happy of the Doomtree crew. I don't mean to imply that the rest of them make music that is dark or cynical; it's just that he seems to project a more upbeat persona through his music. He doesn't appear to have the angry ambition of POS and Mictlan, nor seem as soul-searchingly poetic as Cecil Otter. He also lacks the mercurial nature of Dessa.

Basically, he's the one that can turn out a pile of tracks that are technically skilled, intelligent, and uplifting, which basically describes this installment in the False Hopes series.

Beats are provided by Doomtree regulars Lazerbeak, MK Larada, Paper Tiger, and POS, although there are also tracks produced by Medium Zach and Noam the Drummer. The only guest on this short ep is Omaur Bliss.

Never Better

by P.O.S

Musically, I consider the period from the summer of 2008 to now as the 'Year of Doomtree', as I picked up and listened to a lot of product from this Minneapolis group, of which this album would have to be the highlight.

P.O.S is the first of the Doomtree crew to come to my attention, with his excellent "Audition" album of a few years ago, which this present album surpasses in every way.

First, "Never Better" is beautifully packaged. The cd is packed in a stiff plastic casing, which contains a number of acetate inserts, which can be rearranged to design a custom look. It's a cool idea.

The album itself perfectly blends Stef's punk and rap roots, as discussed in 'Out of Category'. It starts with 'Let it Rattle', where Stef asks "Who really listens?/ Precision with a verse draws a crowd/I draw a line between an easy melody/ and piece on mind," explaining the ethos at work throughout the album.

On 'Optimist' (with its fantastic plastic-cup beat) and 'Purexed', P.O.S eschews the typical boasting of rap and punk, and instead speaks honestly about struggle and growth. This album is both personal and accessible. Other favorite tracks include 'Savion Glover' and 'Been Afraid', which showcases Stef's considerable talents as a storyteller.

'Low Light Low Life' is the only track where other Doomtree members pick up the mic, and Stef is joined by Sims and Dessa (who murders the track). He provides many of his own beats, but is also joined by Lazerbeak, Paper Tiger and MK Larada. This album deserves to be recognized as a classic.

False Hopes

by Doomtree

Since the summer, when Doomtree put out their first official album, I feel like I've been playing catch up on this crew.

This is part of the 'False Hopes' series - a group of releases somewhere between a proper album and a mixtape. Thankfully, it doesn't have any of the skits or shout-outs that ruin most mixtapes, and instead serves as a sampler of the Doomtree crew's talents.

All of them rap on here: POS, Sims, Dessa, Cecil Otter, and Mictlan. The beats are by Otter, POS, Paper Tiger, Lazerbeak, and MK Larada.

Some of these tracks have shown up in other places - 'Savion Glover' is one of the best tracks on the new POS album, but they work nicely together. It's a short, quick album, but a highly enjoyable one. As much as I like it now, I imagine I would have gone nuts over it in 2007, when there weren't a lot of other Doomtree projects to turn to.