Doomtree CD Release Show with I Self Devine and Kill The Vultures

Doomtree

About halfway through the night Friday I noticed something a bit unexpected: a guy wearing a Portishead t-shirt. Now, I’ve seen many people in Portishead t-shirts but never at a hip-hop show and I think that says something about Doomtree. They, like local boys done good Atmosphere and several other national acts, have, by design or just by accident, attracted a wide array of fans—always a good sign if you are trying to take it to the next level, and to be clear Doomtree is definitely doing a good job of climbing the ladder.

 

The night started with Kill The Vultures who mix up punk, jazz and odd, dissonant beats while Alexei Moon Casselle rhymes in a manner that reminds of a more lucid Tricky or more laconic Eminem. It’s a difficult listen but once you get into it, it’s addictive. KtV are furious about a multitude of things (politics, poverty, the lure and pitfalls of the streets, etc.) and it gets claustrophobic at times, but when you let it in, the fog lifts and it all makes perfect sense. Casselle stepped out on to the mini-runway that had been constructed in front of the stage and watching him—all alone shaking his fist and pointing to the crowd for emphasis every so often—you got the sense that he felt it was “me against the world”—an unseen, unfathomable weight resting on his shoulders. It’s not for the faint of heart, but if you’ve gotten the all-clear from your physician, prick up your ears.

 

I Self Divine came at the crowd full-force making use of the runway, trading rhyming duties back and forth like a modern day Run-DMC. Nothing caught my ear however. The crowd clearly loved it, but they played a hurried, cacophonous set and it ended up just seeming a bit sloppy to me. I had never seen them before and maybe they always come at the crowd like a pack of meth-addled pit bulls, but overall it seemed a little forced and didn’t always ring true.

 

The wait was longer than expected for Doomtree (it was close to 45 minutes) but it was worth every second of the extra time. Full disclosure here: I’m not a “hip-hop guy,” but I have seen Doomtree live several times, I do know what a good live show is (I hope) and this was definitely one of them. They kept the crowd waiting just long enough where the tension and anticipation were at their highest, right at the point before people start getting bored, cranky and annoyed and you start hearing the “who do these guys think they are?” complaints. It was perfect. They were all loose and comfortable on stage. The beats were, as always, fresh and crisp, referencing their roots (think everything great you ever saw on Yo! MTV Raps) without seeming like rip-off artists, even for a few seconds. They trade lead vocals and each of them has their own style, own flow, own distinct stage presence. P.O.S. bore a bit of resemblance (physically and otherwise) to hip-hop legend KRS-One. Mictlan seemed more confrontational than the rest. Dessa stood out simply because she’s the only female, but she definitely held her own within the group, and she was the most animated during the set, dancing around and I’m pretty sure I saw a high kick from her at one point, as well. They had the crowd (which was sellout-plus and had created an oppressive, rainforest-like atmosphere inside the Mainroom) eating out of their hands, clapping and waving their fists on command, singing along to every single word. I attend a lot of indie-rock shows and the crowd isn’t usually like that at those shows, everyone is too cool to dance. And singing along is nearly equal to relieving yourself on the floor—in other words they aren’t always fun. In contrast, this was the most fun show I have seen in months and it was a welcome change. It’s fun to dance, it’s fun to be in a crowd that isn’t so self-aware and self-conscious and above all else, it’s fun to see a band that is on its way to bigger things in a room that’s fairly intimate. There won’t be too many more Doomtree shows like this, I don’t think, and I felt lucky to have been there.