Live From Planet X

Imagine a (nearly) middle-aged rapper that wears a metal mask and releases at least one concept album per year. In the early 90s he performed as Zevlove X, one-half of the highly influential underground act KMD. In 2000 he reemerged simply as MF Doom, releasing his now classic Operation Doomsday album to endless acclaim. In 2003 he released albums as both King Geedorah and Viktor Vaughn. The next year saw the return of Viktor Vaughn, as well as a duet with producer Madlib under the Madvillain moniker. Later this year marks the arrival of Danger Doom as well as a likely collaboration with the Wu-Tang Clan’s own masked man, Ghostface Killah. 

To those who are familiar with MF Doom, all of the above is likely common knowledge, but to the majority who aren’t, take notice as MF Doom (birth name: Daniel Dumile) is arguably one of the most authentic, imaginative characters hip-hop has ever seen. With the release of his live album, Live From Planet X, Doom offers a taste of his catalog as well as a glimpse into his mad world of space monsters, super villains, abstract storytelling and stoned genius.

Never one to follow suit, Doom’s decision to release a live album isn’t quite as unexpected as his decision to release the album as one long, incessant track. As the short set flows, we see appearances from most of his aliases, most eminently his finest, Madvillain. As he slurs his way through the album’s 14 songs, Doom’s laid back, apathetic stance never gets in the way of his craft. Cutting quickly from song to song, Planet X passes hastily without a single dull moment.

Be it a glance into the cannon of hip-hop’s weirdest hero for new fans or just another collection of Doom’s mad genius for fans, Planet X is a stellar release, ready made to prepare listeners for both Danger Doom (his collaboration with Danger Mouse) and Doomface (or whatever they end up calling it). He may never crack the charts, but with each release Daniel Dumile adds to one of the greatest rap legacies of all.    5.5/10

Written by G. William Locke