UKNW SOUNDS : DOOMTREE (USA)
What’s hiding behind Doomtree? The simplest answer is not necessarily the best. Doomtree is a group of personalities from Minneapolis (Astronautalis), which currently includes POS, Sims, Dessa, Mike Mictlan, Cecil Otter, Paper Tiger andLazerbeak. After some years of excellent solo work, all together they now give us a wonderful indie hip-hop production violating all areas. Although the group contains distinct musical personalities, everyone manages to contrast their eclectic styles in the best way, be it with their vocal style or underlined flow. On the job, Paper Tiger, or POS maintain a simple and powerful sound, while the pace of Dessa and also Cecil Otter is more voluptuous and jazzy. This is diverse, engaging, vibrant … and we love it!
One of their best albums, No Kings, released in 2011, is a whole bunch of surprises. A beautiful mixed noise, with assets of a Drake or a boldKanye West track. The underhanded knocking, mastered scratching, and jazzy pop effects of Dessa in Bolt Cutter, make this track a good introduction to the following titles. In fact, all of their musical diversity is shown here. The instrumental of the album is even more successful. Guitars are torn up in Beacon (sounding like good old Limp Bizkit!) The track Punch Out and its frenetic beats give us more of a rock vibe, the addition of brass instruments in Team The Best Team and piano solo in Bolt Cutter brings more of a classic vibe. They even dare to launch some electronic impulses in The Grand Experiment.
Deserting and rebelling against all stigmas, the proud heads of Doomtree play like kids, trying to break the norm and provide us with their unusual imagination. It’s a timeless journey through the maze of the hip-hop scene, all directed by one (of the) hand (s) of mastery.
Julien Catala