P.O.S. « Dopehug

Oooowwweeee I don’t know what it is about hip hop collectives that I appreciate so damn much. Doomtree belongs in the same breath as Living Legends, Sandpeople, The Visionaries etc. The hip hop talent oozing out of Minnesota is staggering. I don’t try to understand how that much talent has emerged from such an unexpected place but I do support it, every little dope morsel of it. Doomtree has a little bit of a harshness to them that is like when you have to look at yourself in the mirror after a night of too much drinking and regrets. A dose of reality with a tinge of hope weaving between the lines. The individual stylings of Cecil Otter (stylin on yo ass), Dessa (wordplay for dayyyyyys), P.O.S. (crazzzzy fast flow), Sims (Honesty is his best policy) and Mike Mictlan (badass voice) keep things fresh and diversified. Beats are supplied by Lazerbeak, MK Larada and Paper Tiger. For some reason I feel like a lot of these tracks have a movie soundtrack quality because the images they create in your mind are so vivid. Put this hip hop fam-bam on your radar.

Production: Lazerbeak, MK Larada, Paper Tiger

Label: Doomtree

Doomtree – ‘Slow Burn’

Doomtree – ‘Veteran’

This album earns props just due to the amazing line-up alone (Slug, Brother Ali, P.O.S., Scarface, Raekwon, Murs etc.) Bk-One is mostly known for being DJ to Brother Ali but for this album he is using his production skills along side fellow Minneap producer Benzilla. Bk’s Brazilian inspired beats are funky, creative and fresh leaving a great pallet for hip hop creativity. The effort put forth by the emcees is inspiring. These songs don’t have a bunch of throw-away verses, they cover many topics both serious and fun, happy and sad, inspiring and sobering but never lacking depth. If you are a fan of the Rhymesayers, Brazil, or just hip hop in general there is something for you on this album.

Production: Bk-One, Benzilla, Brother Ali

Features: Abstract Rude, Aby Wolf, Aceyalone, Black Thought, Blueprint, Brother Ali, I Self Devine, Murs, Phonte, P.O.S., Raekwon, Slug, Scarface, The Grouch, The Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Toki Wright

Full Preview: Radio do Canibal

Website: http://www.myspace.com/balmoral

Bk-One – ‘Here I Am (ft. Phonte, Brother Ali & The Grouch)

—Dopehug

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P.O.S.

Doomtree – ‘False Hopes’ (2007)

BK-One with Benzilla – Radio do Canibal (2009)

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