MF Doom Albums (12)
What The Critics Say
After MF Doom spent a few years off record (and maybe off stage, if the impostor rumors are true), fans were ready for another classic from the man who never met a bar he couldn't tack four extra syllables onto. And as if expectations couldn't be ratcheted any higher, the album included a few productions from Dilla and Madlib alongside Doom himself, plus features for a quartet of legendary compatriots (Ghostface, Raekwon, Bumpy Knuckles aka Freddie Foxxx, and Slug from Atmosphere). Still, it's hard to stifle the disappointment. Doom hasn't changed a whit, but by the same token, he sounds like he's repeating himself. Deft diction is one thing he's got in spades, but there aren't many lines here that will get burned into your neurons. The productions are dense and dark as usual, but Doom's unrelenting lyrical flow has reached some kind of endpoint where he can't torture his internal rhymes any more without just repeating "how now brown cow" for three minutes on end. Even more unfortunately, the best production by Doom is the homophobic "Batty Boyz," and Ghostface, on his lone feature, does little more than obsess over Charlie's Angels. (Their other contemporary collaboration, "Chinatown Wars," is tragically nowhere to be heard here.) Doom may still be among the best purveyors of absurdist metaphysical fantasies in hip-hop since Jeru the Damaja, but Born Like This is a back-to-reality call. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide
'Special Herbs, Vols. 9-10'
Release Date 7/12/2005
Tracks 13
Label Shaman Works
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What The Critics Say
The villainous one returns with another set of instrumentals and backing tracks used previously on his proper releases. While it's a great way to study the groovy loops and the perfect edits MF Doom creates, newcomers should know that tracks are untouched for the most part, not mind-blowing turntable workouts or grand remixes. That's cool for Doom fans, since his lyric-filled albums require mucho attention to really work their magic. Instead, the Special Herbs series provides those cool Doom grooves as background music, perfect for practicing your pimp walk, your MC skills, or your ability to adhere to the "puff, puff, give" policy. In fact, Special Herbs, Vols. 9 & 0 is less manipulated than usual; arguably the most dryly presented volume in the series. This works just fine for Doom's breezier beats as of late, with the loosest and most languid given extra time to stretch. The first half of the album rolls along nicely till the Laibach-meets-human-beatbox "'Untitled' (Meditation)" mashes things up. The second half ducks and weaves a bit more along with being funkier and firmly '70s. The risky bits come at the end with the frantic "Coca Leaf" hiccupping up a wailing diva, while "Peach Extract" brings the show to a close with a campy, Brazilian tickle. It adds up to the best flow the Special Herbs series has ever displayed and a great way to introduce Doom's unique production style to the groove-friendly. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide
'Live from Planet X'
Release Date 3/8/2005
Tracks 1
Label Nature Sounds
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What The Critics Say
Originally titled Live at the DNA Lounge and given away with pre-orders for the instrumental collection Special Herbs, Vol. 5-6, Live from Planet X isn't the most vital release from MF Doom but it will satisfy both the faithful and familiar. Doom has added some "space sound effects" to this new version that fit perfectly with the album's feel since this isn't your usual live release. There's little room ambience and crowd participation is fairly absent on this straight-from-the-soundboard recording, but Doom himself is all the way live, rattling off two studio albums' worth of rhymes without ever sounding spent. It's an underground lyric lover's dream, and there are early-era hits aplenty with the best of Operation: Doomsday and some assorted singles getting righteous workouts. The flow is from the street to outer space as the rapper gets looser as he goes and the show ends in a trippy cacophony of melting sound effects and turntables grinding to a halt. Bummer that it's all on one track on the CD, but if Doom's making a point, point taken. Live from Planet X has its highlights, but if the listener has the time, it is better taken as a 40-minute journey. Doom's relentless verbal attack is overwhelming this way and while any of his more mind-altering studio albums are better introductions to the artist, Live from Planet X works just fine as Doom purchase number two, especially if you're all about the venomous verse. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
You could call the proper follow-up to 1999's heralded Operation: Doomsday highly anticipated if it weren't for the wealth of side projects, pseudonyms, bootlegs, and mixtapes MF Doom unleashed afterward. Still, every bit of Doom output has the underground's tongue wagging, and as usual, the metal-fingered villain doesn't disappoint. Part of the reason for this is that MM..Food? is unconcerned with the hype and doesn't try too hard. It's actually one of Doom's least ambitious releases and a lot more fun than his previous ones, especially anything released under his dark Viktor Vaughn moniker. Food references and a ton of samples and scratches from old Fantastic Four read-along records keep the album light as Doom takes tired hip-hop topics like "keeping your hoes in check" and turncoat friends and screws with them. Backstabbers get their due on the Whodini-sampling "Deep Fried Frenz" while guest Mr. Fantastik gives fakes a proper whooping on the excellent "Rapp Snitch Knishes." Doom's behind every beat here, whipping up a busy brew of screw-loose samples and late-'90s beats. The mostly instrumental middle of the album is a fantastic, playful ride and more fresh evidence the man is never swayed by fads. Fans looking for his next big statement might be let down at first listen, but MM..Food? is as vital as anything he's done before and entirely untouched or stymied by the hype. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide
'Special Herbs, Vols. 7-8'
Release Date 9/20/2004
Tracks 13
Label Shaman Work
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What The Critics Say
MF Grimm shines on these previously used MF Doom beats. The Metal Fingered Villain aka Viktor Vaughn aka King Geedorah produces beats that flow perfectly with Grimm's style. Fatman Scoop introduces the record with gusto, and Grimm and Doom match styles like peanut butter and jelly, alt-rock chicks and lunch boxes, and very definitely head-nodding and jazz tobacco. MF Doom uses some of his best productions to showcase another rapper's style. Potentially, the record could have ended up stale and sounding like a re-run, but Grimm and Doom are too good to be denied. Assembled in a kind of mixtape style, the free flow suits Special Herbs + Spices perfectly. Even though MF Doom is retracing ground, in regard to production, it's MF Grimm who makes the record worthwhile even for MF Doom's legion of devoted fans. The beats are out there and the rhymes have that uniqueness that gives the collaboration added freshness. MF Doom continues to bring the goods to his backpack-wearing fans, giving them one more thing to buy besides trees and snacks. ~ Matt Whalley, All Music Guide
'Special Herbs, Vols. 5-6'
Release Date 3/23/2004
Tracks 17
Label Nature Sounds
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'Venomous Villain'
Release Date 1/1/2004
Tracks 12
Label Insomniac Music
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What The Critics Say
Kicking out the moody, quirky jams, MF Doom returns with his crafty alias Viktor Vaughan (Victor Von Doom was the birth name of Marvel comics character Dr. Doom, true believers). If you're following the Dr. Doom legend, this would be MF Doom before the evildoers got to him, or maybe a more personal Doom, mask off. It's both with some tracks coming off as hungry K.M.D. material and the rest being introspective tales of darkness. Despite his hectic release schedule, Doom keeps the quality high on the album. Lyrics are tight, clever, and darkly humorous, but it's the production that hits you first. Digital errors and glitches pop out the murk, and it's jarring. Vocals fold up and disappear while cell-phone voices emerge out of the dark before you go under the bridge and they also vanish. Doom often creates his own beats and he's come off as a mad scientist before, but never has the producer/rapper one-two punch worked so well, creating an album that's fully thought out. Doom has also been this dense before, but not so subterranean. Being so shadowy means the album needs time to linger in your player for full effect, but there are two out-of-the-box classics to add to Doom's repertoire. The busy "R.A.P. G.A.M.E." is the first, with an unavoidable, hooky chorus and sweet beats from Session 31. Doom's view of the state of rap, Kool Keith's skewed comments on the same, plus doper-than-dope scratching from DJ Sure Shot should keep "Doper Skiller" in every freak's MP3 player for at least a year or two. The rest of the album is hard to separate, which is a compliment to this noir-flavored journey. Too much roam and wander for some, but Doom-heads looking for the perfect downer couldn't ask for much more. Hoody, headphones, Venomous Villain -- now you're ready for a long walk in the rain. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide
'Special Herbs, Vols. 3-4'
Release Date 9/23/2003
Tracks 16
Label Nature Sounds
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What The Critics Say
Daniel Dumile (aka MF Doom) concluded a prolific 2003 with this paranoiac collection of warped city tales, released under the alter ego Viktor Vaughn. Having relegated production duties to a committee consisting of RJD2 and relative unknowns King Honey, Heat Sensor, and Max Bill, Dumile's full attention is left for the mike. With his mush-mouthed delivery as currency, the charismatic MC delivers a phone book of impressionistic rhyme trails, barmy anecdotes, and twisted punchlines that siphon humor into the grayest scenarios. Vaudeville Villain's story-raps are just as brilliantly spun -- the immaculate "Let Me Watch" features Apani B Fly guesting as Vaughn's vestal romantic foil and ends on a note that strikes just the right balance between Vaughn's comedic and sordid qualities. Grubby and excitable, the album's production is no less superb, with RJD2's "Saliva," Heat Sensor's "Never Dead," and King Honey's title track standing out as high points. Dense, bright, and packed with ideas, Vaudeville Villain is Dumile at his absolute best. ~ Mark Pytlik, All Music Guide
