Dr. Octagon

Sometimes there is a long dry spell between my finding something interesting to listen to. Sometimes things fall into place when they are supposed to. I find something , progress to something else and then onto something else.

My thing with Rap started with the Flobots and then went onto Snoop Dogg and then it went onto Eminem. On this journey I learned it’s all in the production. There is a lot of shitty Rap and Hip Hop out there and there is some stellar stuff. Though I can’t stand Dr. Dre’s recordings, I have to give him credit for his production of the albums of others.

OK, I found someone new (to me) and a producer that is every bit as interesting as Dre. The Rapper is Keith "Kool Keith" Thornton and his character is Dr. Octagon; just like how Marshall Mathers (Eminem) is Slim Shadey. Kieth’s debut album Dr. Octagonecologyst is more than interesting even at first listen.

If you listen to Eminem you will hear a lot of great melodies, some I believe acceptable to be turned into Muzak, but you won’t get this with Dr. Octagon. With Octagon you will get sounds, strange sounds interlaced with rap. It really sounds like B-grade music from B-grade science fiction films.

The difference between the sounds of traditional rap and Octagon is I believe the product of the producer, Dan “The Automator” Makamura, a Japanese American Hip Hop Producer. Makamura seemingly broke the rules for Rap production and it makes every track on this collection dark yet interesting in a Chemical Brothers kind of a way.

If you aren’t already a fan of Rap, this collection will not change your opinion, however if you are, this collection may put a different spin on things for you. Here’s a sample for you.

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