Dessa
Parts Of Speech
Doomtree (2013)
A while back, I asked a friend of mine to introduce me to some new music. I was feeling burnt out on my usual prog fare, and I desperately needed to listen to something different. She suggested I give an artist named Dessa a try, and a little while later, I was listening to her debut album A Badly Broken Code. … Read more
Doomtree
No Kings
Doomtree (2011)
It’s not hard to find something to say about Doomtree. The 7-headed monster has enough disparate characters that I could fill the proverbial pages here without even addressing No Kings, their second official full-length. The band recently made some internet waves with the mash-up Wugazi project—which is where I’ll start since the opening track, “No Way,” begins with a guitar … Read more
Four Fists
6666
Doomtree (2018)
Four sixes, four fists, two rappers and some punchy production that’s equally space age and heavy hitting. It’s my own interpretation here, but the group name is more a reference to solidarity and kinship between rappers P.O.S and Astronautalis than it’s a statement of anger or frustration. The group is built on the fluid, and often laid-back raps of Astronautalis … Read more
P.O.S.
Chill, Dummy
Doomtree (2017)
A new kidney hasn’t made P.O.S soft and introspective. On his return to action album Chill, Dummy, he’s as angry and pointed as ever. The album rages, with moments of reflection that turn outward instead of in.The Minneapolis rapper has had an interesting evolution. He sprung up as a DIY punk-turned rapper, helped found the Doomtree collective, and released records on the seminal … Read more
Sims
Bad Time Zoo
Doomtree (2011)
Six years is a long time between a freshman and sophomore release. Granted, that length isn’t entirely accurate—Sims has been involved in a number of Doomtree records, from the False Hopes mixtape series to appearances on various crew records. Still, he has been patient as Doomtree has released solo records for nearly everyone else in the collective since 2005’s Lights … Read more
Sims
False Hopes XIV
Doomtree (2009)
Lights Out Paris was one of my favorite releases of 2005, but as the Doomtree crew only has so much time and money on their hands, they rotate members' releases. Thus, it's taken Sims until 2009 to release a False Hopes (the Doomtree version of a mixtape). On #14, Sims has ten new songs to show his growth as an … Read more
Sims
More Than Ever
Doomtree (2016)
Sims is something of a firebrand on his early work, spitting political vitriol and pointing fingers outward and in on records like Lights Out Paris and Bad Time Zoo. This time around, the Minneapolis rapper is looking even more inward on the new More Than Ever, a record that pushes expectation beyond the hard-hitting beats and spitfire lyricism with echo-y … Read more
