MF DOOM

MF Doom (photo by B+)

Daniel Dumile, better known as MF DOOM (DOOM), is a British born American hip hop artist. Born in London, England, he moved with his family to New York and raised in Long Island. Under one of his many pseudonyms, Dumile has release several albums and appeared on collaborative projects with artists such as Danger Mouse and Madlib.

Here under the name Metal Fingers, he samples Arthur Verocai’s Seriado in his song, Passion Flower.

The many faces of DOOM: 

DANIEL DUMILE: The man behind the masks. 

ZEV LOVE X: Lead rapper with KMD (that’s a positive Kause in a Much Damaged society if you squint from the right angle), whose black power-meets-Daisy classic Mr Hood kaused… sorry caused… a fraction of the damage it deserved. 

MF DOOM: Only the warm, softly-spoken voice (now descending into an alcoholic slur) remains as he re-emerges in 1997 as Metal Face Doom with a head full of comic books, wearing a mask over his face and bearing eccentric LPs for the Fondle ‘Em label. Ditching every last vestige of his KMD past, he abandons raw funk and skewed jazz for tinny beats at un-danceable tempos, while playful narratives give way to scatter- gun surrealism. 

KING GEEDORAH: A 500-foot tall three-headed lizard inhabiting distant galaxies. Unable to visit earth for fear of the widespread panic that might ensue, he channels his philanthropic message through MF Doom. Quite why he chooses a mask-wearing loon as a conduit rather than a more credible witness like, say, respected news- reader Trevor McDonald or cosmologist Stephen Hawking, isn’t fully explained. 

VIKTOR VAUGHN: Though also derived from Marvel Comics’ Vic Von Doom, VV is a very different MC from MF. Younger, more villainous, street-smart and battle-ready, last year’s brilliant Vaudeville Villain album is an unstoppable romp through street crime, open-mic nights and voyeuristic sex. More funny ha-ha than funny weird. 

DOOM’S LIFE IN FIVE PARTS … ONE OF OURS: Daniel Dumile was actually born in London, but he emigrated to New York before he could talk. Still, with only Slick Rick to compete with in the Anglo-American rap list, he should he claimed for the UK the minute he steps back onto British soil. 

DEATH OF SUBROC: KMD’s debut album, Hr Hood, was evenly divided between angry 5 Percent diatribes (“Nitty Gritty”) and goofy Tribe-like novelties (“Peachfuzz”). Although both were released as singles, the group resented Elektra marketing them as fluffy Native Tongues, not men on a militant mission. With a darker second album in the can their mood wasn’t helped when Subroc, Dumile’s brother and KMD DJ, was killed in a car accident. A decade on the wound hasn’t healed and when Sleaze tried to discuss KMD’s tragic demise the interview was abruptly terminated. 

BL_CK B_ST_RDS: Already uneasy with the gurgles of black separatism emanating from KMD’s second album, Elektra threw the baby out with the bathwater when they saw the sleeve. The black sambo character, which had been crossed out on the Mr Hood cover in a denunciation of racist stereotyping, was now being hanged n the manner of the kids’ word game. KMD and the label parted company. Zev Love/Dumile disappeared, rumoured to be suffering from depression, fuelled by spiralling drink and drug abuse. 

REBIRTH AS MF DOOM: Oddly, he really found his voice when it deteriorated. Dooms early records are slurred, arryhythmic and blissfully unaware of such rules as scanning. But this gave him a peculiar freedom to make records no one else would even contemplate. Now that he’s re-developed something resembling a proper (if still unique) flow matched to lyrics so damn sharp you need a week to take them in, Doom is making the best records of his life. 

Another 9th Wonder sample of Verocai

Little Brother’s song, We Got Now on The Minstrel Show cd  uses Verocai’s song, Caboclo

Catch the man behind the music, Arthur Verocai, this Sunday, March 15th, 2009 for Timeless III presented by VTech and Mochilla 

Sunday, March 15th, 2009
7-11pm / All Ages / $22.50 Limited Presale / $32.50 After
*Presale Tickets Available @www.ticketmaster.com and
The Luckman Box Office +1 323 343 6600
(Please keep in mind that these are assigned seating events – in order to sit together you MUST purchase your tickets together – to view seating chart please go http://luckmanarts.org/seatingchart.php)
*Presale + early arrival is STRONGLY suggested*