Doomtree
| Doomtree |
| Origin |
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Genres |
Hip-hop |
| Associated acts |
Atmosphere, Building Better Bombs, Toki Wright, I Self Divine, Crescent Moon, The Plastic Constellations, Millionth Word, Medida, Gayngs |
| Members |
P.O.S.
Sims
Dessa
Mictlan
Cecil Otter
Paper Tiger
Lazerbeak |
| Past members |
MK Larada
Turbo Nemesis |
Doomtree is a hip hop collective based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Members of Doomtree bring various bases of knowledge and musical backgrounds together to create alternative-influenced rap and hip-hop music. Nearly as prominent as the influence of hip-hop in their music is that of punk, and their lyrics are frequently introspective. They often do shows with fellow Minnesota hip-hop label Rhymesayers Entertainment. Emcees perform solo or with one another, each contributing a different approach to their music. Doomtree's self-released, self-titled debut album as a group was released on July 29, 2008.
History
Members of Doomtree have described the group's formation as a gradual process.[1] The initial lineup saw P.O.S and MK Larada, friends from high school, making songs with other local artists such as Cecil Otter and Beautiful Bobby Gorgeous; soon enough Sims and Lazerbeak, fellow Hopkins High School alumni followed. Mike Mictlan, having also attended high school with P.O.S, became an official member when he moved back to Minneapolis from Los Angeles.[2] Dessa joined after having a chance encounter with P.O.S, who was living down the street from her at the time along with Sims, Turbo Nemesis and MK Larada.[3]
Group
Emcees
- P.O.S (Stefon Alexander) has released three albums under the Rhymesayers record label in conjunction with the Doomtree label. His first album, Ipecac Neat, was originally released in 2003, and made its Rhymesayers debut in 2004, winning The Minneapolis Star-Tribunes "Best local album of the year". In 2006, he repeated this feat with his critically acclaimed Audition. He also performs with the punk rock group "Building Better Bombs". His third album, Never Better, was released on February 3, 2009. In the past, P.O.S has used the pseudonym "Emily Bloodmobile" for production work. For the time being, P.O.S. has retired that nickname. He is currently working on his next solo album.
- Sims (Andrew Sims) released his first full-length album in July 2005; titled Lights out Paris, it received 4.5 out of 5 stars in URB Magazine (2005) and 4 out of 5 stars at okayplayer.com (2005). He has appeared on the P.O.S. is Ruining My Life tour 2006, the 2007 Vans Warped Tour, as well as at SXSW in 2008. His new album, Bad Time Zoo, was released February 15, 2011.
- Dessa (Maggie Wander) released one of Doomtree's several False Hopes albums and often performs live with violinist Jessy Greene, who is featured on P.O.S's Audition. She is an accomplished spoken word poet. In 2009, she released a book of creative fiction, Spiral Bound, Doomtree's first print offering. Her debut LP, A Badly Broken Code, was released on January 19, 2010.
- Mike Mictlan (Mike Marquez) has released Doomtree False Hopes albums Deity for hire and Deity for Re-hire. Mictlan released a collaboration album, Hand Over Fist, with Doomtree producer Lazerbeak on September 23, 2008. Mike is currently working on his next solo album which does not yet have a title.
- Cecil Otter (Kyle Smith) released Hung Over-seas, a Doomtree False Hopes album in 2003. He was also a finalist in a national spoken word competition inspired by the 2004 presidential election. He released another album, Cecil Otter's False Hopes, in 2005. In late 2006 Cecil Otter released a limited edition version of his follow-up album, Rebel Yellow, at the second Doomtree Blowout. A remixed and expanded version of Rebel Yellow was released on August 26, 2008. He was signed to Sage Francis's record label, Strange Famous, as of January 2009. He is currently working towards his follow-up album, Porcelain Revolver. He is also working on a collaborative album with Lazerbeak on which Cecil Otter will rap on Lazerbeak's beats, and Lazerbeak will sing on Cecil's beats, its title is "The Eupheus Pitch".
Producers/DJs
- Paper Tiger (John Samels) has produced for Doomtree emcees and quite often spins records for Doomtree performances. He also provides graphic design for various flyers and other Doomtree visuals. His False Hopes album was released at the 3rd Annual Doomtree Blowout. Paper Tiger released his first full-length solo album titled "Made Like Us" on July 27, 2010.
- Lazerbeak (Aaron Mader) has produced many tracks for Doomtree emcees as well as several other Minneapolis hip-hop artists, including Toki Wright. He is also the guitarist of Minnesota indie band The Plastic Constellations. He released an album entitled Hand Over Fist with emcee Mictlan. He also produced a track on Mac Lethal's album on Rhymesayers, 11:11. Lazerbeak's first full-length solo album "Legend Recognize Legend" was released on September 28, 2010. He produced Sims' new album "Bad Time Zoo" which was released on February 15, 2011, He is also working on a collaborative album with Cecil Otter on which Cecil Otter will rap on Lazerbeak's beats, and Lazerbeak will sing on Cecil's beats, its title is "The Eupheus Pitch".
Affiliated artists
- Tom Servo has produced tracks for Dessa and Sims.
- Violinist Jessy Greene often contributes to Doomtree projects.
- DJ Plain Ole Bill has been behind the turntables for P.O.S on the majority of his tour dates throughout 2009, including the Never Better Tour, Pac Tour, and Warped Tour.
- Rapper Astronautalis
- Concert Photographer and Screenprinter Extraordinaire Ben LaFond
Performances
Doomtree artists are highly active in the Twin Cities hip-hop community, with at least one emcee performing a show somewhere in the metro area at least every 3–4 weeks; in addition, every December, the entire crew takes the stage at First Avenue for their annual "Doomtree Blowout".
2010 saw the first "Doomtree Snowout," an additional "Blowout" show at First Avenue due to the bad weather.
In 2011, the Doomtree Blowout was extended to "One F***ing Week," with each rapper curating his or her own show at the 7th Street Entry starting Sunday, Dec. 4th, all culminating in two shows at First Avenue Dec. 9th and 10th.
Discography
Studio Albums
References
External links