Alright, so this is not exactly a new MF DOOM album, but Expektoration featuring Big Benn Klingon captures some invigorating stage performance moments from the mystery man’s catalogue from the past decade. I get the feeling like this release is a retrospective intermission before the next proper album release. Regardless, what we get is a well crafted entertaining live showcase of the elusive DOOM split up into a two act set of performances stitched together by dancehall lasers and air horns.
Act 1 gives an excellent live rendition of tracks from MM…Food that includes a shout out to a New York audience in celebration of a charitable food drive. Talk about love folks. What you get are more frantic deliveries of “Hoe Cakes,” “One Beer,” “Beef Rap,” “Kon Karne” as well as an amped up “Accordion” from Madvillainy and more.
At the beginning of Act 2, DOOM asks his New York audience, “Hey yo, how many of ya’ll bought that Operation: Doomsday album when it came out?” The audience roars and the classic “Doomsday” is performed with a breakneck and breathless delivery accompanied with audience responses and sing along moments aplenty. Hearing “Go with the Flow” reminded me of Operation: Doomsday’s importance and performances like “Hey!” showcase the heavy presence of comic book self-styled villainy that only DOOM could ever command.
Hearing these energetic performances has inspired me to revisit DOOM’s old school KMD records in order to re-begin the whole story. (R.I.P. DJ Subroc) The great epic and lesser told saga of Daniel Dumile becoming the militant yet conscious Zev Love X before his reincarnation into hip-hop’s metal-masked marauder. While not introducing new material other than a wonky Star Trek intermission “I don’t speak Klingon” sample quip, compliments of that Big Benn Klingon character I’m sure, it incites an attitude of thankfulness for DOOM’s influential contributions to the pop and hip-hop realms over the past few decades. Expektoration highlights his stage shows with an intimate vibe that gets you as close as you can to experiencing DOOM work his lyrical magic as if you were in the front row.
