It’s been three long years since anyone has heard from Minneapolis hip-hop collective Doomtree as a whole. The group’s five MCs and two producers have been hard at work on solo projects, each with their own flavors. In No Kings, the seven flavors have finally reunited in synergy to create a dark, aggressive album that’s well worth the wait.
Picking a standout track is difficult when each highlights different strengths. Eight of the 12 tracks feature at least four out of five MCs, each weaving his or her own personality together seamlessly over various platforms of beats. Unique styles define the members through lyrics, subject matter, delivery and rhythm, yet they are all close enough to forge effortless chemistry and play off each other’s strengths and weaknesses. There truly are no kings in Doomtree.
In “Team the Best Team” alone, a triumphant beat by Lazerbeak leads MC P.O.S. through his characteristically dark, fragmented thoughts as they come out too fast to keep up with. While heads spin, trying to figure out what just happened in P.O.S.’s verse, Sims is already on the mic, bringing the track back to decipherable messages through his near-nasal voice. Cecil Otter follows with a calm, trademark flow of complex imagery and storylines, transitioning smoothly into Dessa’s melodic spoken-word. Finally, it all comes to a grinding finale with Mike Mictlan’s hyper-aggressive, in-your-face delivery. And it’s on to the next one.
Much of No Kings follows a similar pattern that consistently arranges the MCs in the best possible manner. Thanks to the diverse soundscapes produced mostly by Lazerbeak, with P.O.S., Paper Tiger and Cecil Otter stepping in to produce occasionally, the pattern never gets old. Beats range in tone from dark to celebratory, and in style from choppy futurism in “The Grand Experiment,” to Dick Dale-esque pseudo-surf in “Punch-Out,” to loping western mystery in “Little Mercy.”
The variety certainly helps every track stay fresh, but there is more than variety at work here. It is evident in the meticulous fine tuning of every second in every track that some real effort went into the aural design. The producers tailor miniscule variables to fit each section and reflect the style of whoever is rapping. In “Bolt Cutter,” for example, Sims opens and builds the track over electronic tones with hints of dubstep drops. Next, Dessa raps a melodious and poetically ingenious verse over a piano variation, only to blast into Mictlan’s face-melting climax over a return to the heavier electro. Somehow, these nuances always stay true to the grander theme, much like the lyrics.
Anyone could take five rappers, put them in a room and expect to hear great verses. Rarely, however, would the individual verses connect, and that’s where Doomtree’s chemistry comes back into play. At times, the wordplay focuses on the same tone or theme. Other times, a story continues with a new spin from one MC to the next. In “Little Mercy,” after an existential introspection from Dessa, Cecil Otter snaps the tone back to positive. He says, “No more talk about the backfires / This time we fire back,” as if giving a reality check to a friend in crisis.
Overall, the album’s tone stays dark and heavy, save for a few light spots in “String Theory” and “Fresh New Trash.” The only aspect to eclipse the darkness is the hype factor. No Kings vibes as fast and hard as a punk record and blares with enough force to crack your glasses, but it’s still pure Minneapolis rap. The hype is nothing new for the Doomtree crew, who continually thrive off of their own energy during live shows. It’s a reminder of why they call their annual full-crew show the Blowout. No Kings will translate into a live set as well as anything they’ve done in the past, and its 12 tracks will undoubtedly make crowds move, yell and above all, sweat.
4.5 stars out of 5
