Note: This is a collaboration between rapper MF Doom and producer Danger Mouse (best known for The Gray Album and his work on Demon Days by Gorillaz) with each track bookended by banter from Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim characters including Space Ghost, Harvey Birdman, Brak and the stars of Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Sealab 2021.
Production: Cinematic (brassy soul and gritty funk meet spare hip hop beats, plus several mystical, Wu-Tang-esque moods) but the whole vibe is brighter and more playful than those descriptions might suggest
Lyrics: MF Doom’s laid back and articulate flow sounds as if you’re catching him in between bites of food and sips of drink as he raps about food, the Adult Swim cartoon characters and his disdain for mainstream MCs, who he calls out with amusing lines like “Order a rapper for lunch and spit out the chain” (“Sofa King”) and “Catch a rapper by his toe and smack off his tattoos” (“No Names”)
Heavy Rotation tracks: “Sofa King” (Top 20 Songs of 2005 Candidate); “The Mask” (featuring Ghostface); “Crosshairs”
Medium Rotation tracks: “No Names“; “Space Ho’s“; “El Chupa Nibre“; “Mince Meat”
Recommended: Even if you prefer hooks in your hip hop (there are very few here) and are sick of interstitial skit interruptions (the cartoon cameos constantly disrupt the flow but are entertaining and fitting), Danger and Doom’s creativity should suck you into this top notch underground hip hop album.
Grade: A- (Top 20 Albums of 2005 Candidate)

(As posted 11/7/05 on davepowersmusic.com)
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