Dr. Octagonecologyst

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Dr. Octagonecologyst
Dr. Octagonecologyst cover
Studio album by Dr. Octagon
Released May 6, 1996
Genre Hip hop
Acid rap
Horrorcore
Length 64:39
Label DreamWorks
Producer Dan The Automator
Kutmasta Kurt
DJ Shadow
Professional reviews
Dr. Octagon chronology
Dr. Octagonecologyst
(1996)
The Return of Dr. Octagon
(2006)

Dr. Octagonecologyst is the first album by underground hip-hop artist Dr. Octagon, an alias for Kool Keith. Dr. Octagon is an extraterrestrial, time-traveling surgeon / obstetric gynecologist who has sex with his patients and nurses.

The album is an example of acid rap and pornocore, genres that Kool Keith helped start. The entire album is produced by Dan The Automator, with an appearance from DJ Shadow on "Waiting List". DJ Q-Bert provides unique scratches previously unheard of in a hip hop album. It also features Sir Menelik (aka Chewbacca Uncircumcised) on tracks 5 and 12.

Contents

[edit] Reception

Professional reviews:

  • Rolling Stone (6/12/97, p.113) - 4.5 Stars (out of 5) - "Occupying the heretofore-undefined area where hip-hop meets hallucinatory sci-fi and porn....a 3 Feet High and Rising for the age of hardware and cynicism."
  • Spin (8/96, p.103) - Very Good - "Dr. Octagon is a welcome return to the irrational, destabilized essence and no-rules vibe of early hip-hop."
  • Alternative Press (10/96, p.83) - 4 (out of 5) - "...deep, dubby bass lines, spooky melodic riffs and consistently heavy beats..."
  • JazzTimes (10/96, p.81) - "...one of the freshest, most relentlessly zany releases to come out of hip-hop in a long while....Keith's oddball excursions reach near-cinematic levels."
  • The Source (3/96, p.102) - 3.5 Mics (out of 5) - "Dr. Octagon brings visions of humor, filth and most of the ill aspects that one conjures up while on acid....a quality album with the proper ingredients....you must keep your mind and ears on point at all times."
  • NME (5/25/96, p.53) - 7 (out of 10) - "`Nineteen strong doses of pure, undiluted hip-hop'...steeped in the kind of abstract atmospheres the finest Wax tracks boast....he rides the grooves with all the flow and assured attitude of the seasoned pro he is."
  • Melody Maker (5/25/96, p.50) - Bloody Essential - "While commercial American hip hop is slithering into an insipid mire of soulless, identikit swingbeat, Dr. Octagon has made an album swathed in character....Get yer prescription fixed."
  • Pitchfork Media (9.2 out of 10) "Dr. Octagonecologyst is a fun-house ride in hell. All of the expected norms of G-Rap have been violently removed and replaced with a healthy dose of creative perversity. It's throbbing and wet, snickering at your hangups, laughing at your conventions."
  • Rap Pages (3/96, p.34) - 8 (out of 10) - "Dr. Octagon...dares to venture where no man has gone before, and manages to get into that universe all real men love to go into....Then there's scratching."
  • New York Times (7/16/96, p.C13) - "...definitely among the most progressive rap projects to be released in the past year....Dr. Octagon sounds at first like an American answer to the trip-hop musician Tricky....But Dr. Octagon actually exists in an orbit of its own..."

[edit] Track listing

All tracks written by Thornton (Kool Keith) and Nakamura (Dan the Automator) for Oct. Music (ASCAP), except:

  • "Intro", "Doctor's Office Visits" and "Bear Witness" written by Nakamura for Oct. Music (ASCAP)
  • "No Awareness" written by Thornton, Nakamura and Collington (Sir Menelik) for Oct. Music (ASCAP)
  • "Dr. Octagon" written by Thornton, Matlin (kut masta kurt) and Collington for F-Troup (BMI)/Oct. Music (ASCAP)
  • "Technical Difficulties" written by Thornton and Matlin for F-Troup (BMI)/Oct. Music (ASCAP)
# Title Length Producer(s) Performer(s) Samples
1 "Intro" 1:16 Dan the Automator n/a
2 "3000" 3:20 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon
  • "Turbulence" by Eddie Harris (from the 1973 album "Excursions")
  • "Consciousness" by Pat Martino (from the 1974 album "Consciousness")
  • "E.V.A." by Jean Jacques Perrey (from the 1970 album "Moog Indigo")
3 "I Got To Tell You" (skit) 0:48 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon
  • "In the Garden" by Bob James (from the 1974 album "One")
4 "Earth People" 4:58 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon, C Note (add. vocals) & Phil Bright (guitar)
5 "No Awareness" 4:25 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon & Sir Menelik
  • "Beautiful Woman" by Larry Coryell (from the 1969 album "Coryell")
6 "Real Raw" 5:35 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon
7 "General Hospital" (skit) 0:26 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon
8 "Blue Flowers" 3:17 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon, Keith Thornton (bass), Miss G (add. vocals) & Sweet "P" (add. vocals)
  • "Violin Concerto No. 2, Sz 112" by Bela Bartok
9 "Technical Difficulties" 2:57 kut masta kurt Dr. Octagon & Whoolio E Glacias (add. vocals)
  • "Doggone" by Love (from the 1969 album "Out Here")
10 "A Visit To The Gynecologyst" (skit) 2:20 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon
  • "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss (1977)
  • "It's a New Day" by Skull Snaps (from the 1973 album "Skull Snaps")
11 "Bear Witness" 3:00 Dan the Automator n/a
  • "Breeze & Soul" by Kool & The Gang (from the 1969 album "Kool & The Gang")
12 "Dr. Octagon" 4:37 kut masta kurt Dr. Octagon & Sir Menelik
13 "Girl Let Me Touch You" 3:40 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon, Phil Bright (bass), Joe Des Cee (add. vocals) & Miss G (add. vocals)
  • "(Don't Want No) Woman" by Lee Michaels (from the 1969 album "Lee Michaels")
  • "Kitty with the Bent Frame" by Quincy Jones (from the 1972 album "$")
14 "I'm Destructive" 3:25 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon, Keith Thornton (bass) & Andy Boy (guitar)
  • "Shack Up" by Banbarra (1976)
15 "Wild and Crazy" 4:27 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon & Keith Thornton (bass)
  • "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss
16 "Elective Surgery" (skit) 0:52 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon
17 "halfsharkalligatorhalfman" 4:29 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon
  • "C'est la Chanson de Mon Amour" by Paul Mauriat (from the 1967 album "L'Aventura")
18 "Blue Flowers Revisited" 4:15 Dan the Automator Dr. Octagon
19 "Waiting List (DJ Shadow/Automator Mix)" 5:09 Dan the Automator & DJ Shadow Dr. Octagon
  • "Call to Awareness" by Hubert Eaves (from the 1979 album "Esoteric Funk")
20 "1977" 2:24 Dan the Automator Kool Keith

[edit] Album Credits

  • Dr. Octagon Main Performer
  • Kool Keith Vocals
  • DJ Q-Bert Scratching, DJ
  • Joe des Cee Harmony Vocals
  • Mark Senasac Mastering
  • Dan the Automator Engineer, Mastering
  • Gordon Chumway Second Engineer
  • Automater Producer, Mixing
  • Whoolio E. Glacias Vocal Organ
  • Sweet-P Vocal Organ
  • C-Note Vocal Organ
  • Andy Boy Guitar
  • Pushead Illustrations
  • Kool Keith Upright Bass

[edit] External links