Tonight: Doomtree Party @ the Triple Rock

MFR's Guide to SXSW: Mpls/St. Paul Bands

P.O.S.


*MP3: P.O.S. - "Goodbye"

Thursday, March 19 11:15 p.m.
Habana Bar Backyard (708 E 6th St)
&
Friday, March 20 11:00 p.m.
Buffalo Billiards (201 E 6th St)

Doomtree


*MP3: Doomtree - "Flex"

Wednesday, March 18 8:00 p.m.
Back Alley Social (303 W 5th St)

"Absolutely fucking nothing but Doomtree."

The "it" MC and his crew bring rhymes and beats down south to show the industry what hip-hop sounds like if you freeze it for nine months. In other words, fresh and freaking cool. Hip-hop fans, don't miss these shows.

Haley Bonar


*MP3: Haley Bonar - "Big Star"

Wednesday, March 18 11:30 p.m.
Victorian Room at The Driskill (604 Brazos St)
&
Thursday, March 19 2:30 p.m.
SESAC Day Stage Cafe Austin Convention Center (500 E Cesar Chavez St)

Ms. Bonar plays and sings country-tinged pop songs that would provide an adequate dictionary definition for 'smoldering.' Go and see TC's favorite heartbreaker, but don't stand too close to the flames. (*Note: Bonar is on Afternoon Records, however, is a staple of the TC scene and needs to be mentioned).

Brother Ali


*MP3: Brother Ali - "Good Lord"

Wednesday, March 18 12:30 a.m.
Back Alley Social (303 W 5th St)
&
Thursday, March 19 12:00 a.m.
Habana Bar Backyard (708 E 6th St)

Sometimes the hardest thing in this world to be is just one of the most gifted rappers in the country. The truth is coming to Austin, so give the man a mic and step back. But not too far.

Dosh


*MP3: Dosh - "If You Want To You Have To"

Wednesday, March 18 10:30 p.m.
Mohawk (912 Red River St)

When not recording and touring with Andrew Bird, Martin Dosh puts out records of distinctly emotional electronic, beat-driven music. His one man show will be a highlight of the festival.

et al.

* The 757s
* Solid Gold
* Josiah Wordsworth
* Toki Wright
* Eyedea & Abilities
* Gary Louris & Mark Olson
* John Gorka
* Grant Hart
* Elizabeth Hunnicutt
* I Self Devine
* Mark Mallman
* Marcy Playground
* Cecil Otter
* Plain Ole Bill
* Birthday Suits
* BK One

Venues and times can be found for all HERE.

Other local bands like Gospel Gossip and First Communion Afterparty will play their trade at unofficial gigs outside of the festival.

We have missed a band, please add them to comments below.

(Erik Martz)

Last of the Record Buyers: Medium Zach Vs. Lazerbeak

(via)

Vita.MN Announces "Are You Local?" SXSW Send-Off Concert @ First Ave.

Star-Trib entertainment offshoot vita.mn has announced its SXSW sendoff concert called "Are You Local?"*, the purpose of which is to send off local musicians headed to ye ole' South-By-Southwest music conference in Austin, TX.

Judging by the flyer posted above, the line-up is a doozy: Recently Forkcasted dream-pop trio Gospel Gossip, neo-psychedelic collective First Communion Afterparty, synth-dance-pop trio Solid Gold, and Sims of hip-hop nonet Doomtree are but four of all the excellent acts playing this show. Check out the rest of the lineup at the top of the post.

Here are the deets:

"Are You Local?"
March 14th @ First Avenue
$3 advance, $6 at the door

There will also be hot dogs. Check it all out at the top of the post.


*Well, no, not really. But it's cool if I do this, yeah?

New Video: Cecil Otter - "1999...The Curse of Gab"

(via)

Though its been POS whose gotten most of the attention lately, it would be the death of hip-hop fans everywhere to underestimate the rest of the estimable Doomtree collective. Poetess Dessa released the MPLS-based nonet's first book, a collection of poetry and essays called Spiral Bound on February 7th; also, rapper Cecil Otter put out his solo album Rebel Yellow last fall. Recently, Otter has signed with label Strange Famous Records, who, in a wider distribution deal, will re-release Yellow. To celebrate, Otter has released a video for "1999...The Curse of Gab," a track from Yellow. Watch it at the top of the post. According to Midwest Broadcast, Otter is currently working on Yellow's follow-up, Porcelain Revolver. 

Atmosphere, Doomtree, St. Paul Slim Come Up Big At Twin Cities Hip-Hop Awards

This past Saturday, the hip-hop acts in the Twin Cities were honored at the 3rd Annual TC Hip-Hop Awards, which took place at the Varsity Theater. Although the full results have yet to be announce on the TC Hip-Hop MySpace Page, a MySpace blog post on St. Paul Slim's page has revealed some of the winners.

And, surprise surprise, a few familiar names show up: Socially conscience nonet Doomtree won TC Best Crew, while rap stalwarts Atmosphere won TC Best Group and TC Best Album. St. Paul Slim won TC Best EP and St. Paul Mayor.

Here are the rest of the results, as quoted directly on St. Paul's Blog:

ROF: TC BEST MC & BEST VIDEO
SPECIAL DARK: BEST TC HIP HOP DOCUMENTARIAN
I SELF DEVINE: BEST KNOWLEDGE SPITTA AND THE HIP HOP HONORS AWARD FOR THE MICRANOTS
LONG DOE'S HOMIE "MILLION DOLLAR KID" GOT BEST FREESTYLE

3rd Annual Twin Cities Awards MySpace Page
St. Paul MySpace Page

Dessa of Doomtree to Release Poetry and Essay Collection

2008 saw a multitude of releases from the Doomtree hip-hop collective, including DVDs, videos, various solo projects, the fourth annual blowout, and, oh yeah, the crew record that came out in July.

If you think that the group is planning to slow down in 2009, then boy are you ever mistaken. First, there's P.O.S releasing his third solo album, Never Better. Then, in unique news, comes Dessa's collection of poetry and essays titled Spiral Bound. It is noteworthy in that it is the first book to be released by the collective. Watch the video above for an explanation of the project's genesis. The first one hundred pre-order copies will arrive signed, with a message in a tiny stoppered bottle.

Doomtree MySpace Page

Video: Doomtree Blowout DVD Advertisement

The Doomtree Blowout DVD, the first ever from the Minneapolis rap collective's label, will feature over 2 hours of live footage, promo videos, and a new False Hopes CD, with 12 new songs from each member of the crew. The DVD will be made available at Doomtree IV on Dec. 6th, and then later at Fifth Element on Dec. 9th.

Watch the video at the top of the post.

Doomtree Release New DVD

Flyer: Doomtree Blowout Part IV

H/TSB

Doomtree Interviewed By Hip-Hop DX

The Minneapolis-based hip-hop nonet was just interviewed about a wide array of different topics by Hip-Hop DX. Here's the first two paragraphs from the piece:

Whether it's been The Replacements or Atmosphere, music from Minneapolis has a history for being vastly-influenced as well as edgy. Longtime allies of the latter group, Doomtree is one of the best things coming out of the Twin Cities these days.

The nine-piece group has some familiar faces to the underground Hip Hop community. P.O.S., who released the acclaimed Audition album [click to read] on Rhymesayers in 2006, joins Dessa, an accomplished poet and emcee, along with seven other members. Jokingly, Dessa tells HipHopDX, “Doomtree is not good at counting. We don’t know how long we’ve been doing it and how many people are in the group.” Regardless of their counting abilities, this group boldly incorporates a mosaic of love, loss and the struggle for twenty-somethings to survive into genre-defying music.

Read the rest of the article here

Doomtree MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)
jon@minneapolisfuckingrocks.com

Video: Doomtree - "Game Over"

Like a cross-pollination of Nickel and Dimed and Clerks, rapper Mike Mictlan demonstrates the difference between the romantization of rappers (notice how the customer in line for the "rap won't save you" line is a damn dirty hipster, no doubt ironically purchasing celery flavored soda. No, wait, that was my college friends) and the reality of actually being a rapper over a toy-box sample and some shuffling, mid-tempo beats. Watch the video for "Game Over" at the top of the post.

From the self-titled crew record, out now.

Doomtree MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)
jon@minneapolisfuckingrocks.com

Show Announcement: Radio K 15th Anniversary Party

The University of Minnesota's radio station Radio K is a veritable underground institution, one deserving of all the celebration it can get, not only for introducing the world to many great, left-of-the-dial bands, but for the fact that, after 15 years, the station is still going strong. So, in order to celebrate, the station has put together some of Minnesota's best acts to play a show at First Avenue. Slow, steady hush-rockers Low, electronic collage-maker/god of multi-tasking Dosh, Doomtree member Sims, and house-of-mirrors psych-rockers Vampire Hands are all coming together on October 8th for an 18+ show to celebrate the station and, presumably, play some awesome music.

Here are the deets:

Low + Dosh + Sims + Vampire Hands
Wednesday, October 8
First Avenue
Minneapolis, MN
8 pm | $12 | 18+

In other Radio K news, the station will be holding its Fall Fund Drive from October 1st to October 10th. So, while you're celebrating the station, throw it some bones too.

Check out Radio K sessions featuring the artists playing on the 8th here:

Doomtree
Dosh
Vampire Hands

(Jonathan Graef)
jon@minneapolisfuckingrocks.com

Video: Doomtree - "Traveling Dunk Tank" (Plus: New Radio K Session!)

From last year's False Hopes.

"Traveling Dunk Tank" YouTube Link
Doomtree YouTube Link
Doomtree MySpace Page

Check out the group's most recent Radio K Session here.

(Jonathan Graef)

Tonight: Doomtree Fifth Element In-Store

After years of false starts, and with anticipation high, Minneapolis hip-hop collective Doomtree is set to drop its self-titled debut album. The band has given us listeners a couple of examples of what can be expected from Doomtree. In addition to those morsels, a new song titled "Game Over" has been posted over at the group's MySpace Page.

Needless to say, anyone who's wanted to hear tracks from this record has gotten more than a few chances. And, if they've heard the songs, they'll most likely want to see them performed live. After all, Doomtree's got a little something of a reputation to uphold. If listeners are interested watching the collective do their thing live, and for free, then they can head on over to Fifth Element. Its there that Doomtree will perform an all-ages show, and will undoubtedly perform tracks from the new record. And, if you're so bold enough, you can get your copy of the record signed by the group themselves.

Details:

Venue: Fifth Element
Address: 2411 Hennepin Ave. S.
East Village
City: Minneapolis
State: MN
Phone: 612-377-0044
Doors: 5:00PM
Ages: All Ages
Cost: Free!

But go early. Free is worth a lot in these troubled times.

Doomtree is out today.

Doomtree MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)

New Doomtree Video - "Drumsticks"

From Doomtree, out tomorrow.

Doomtree MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)

New Doomtree - "The Wren" and "Drumsticks"

Late July is a great time for Minneapolis rap music. Not only is Muja Messiah's new record set to be released with a show on July 27th, but hip-hop collective Doomtree is also set to release its years-in-the-making self-titled debut album. Naturally, expectations are high, and the only way to satiate people's appetites for destruction music is to give them a little taste of it. And Doomtree has done exactly that by posting two brand new tracks from the upcoming record on their MySpace Page. The songs are called "The Wren" and "Drumsticks".

You might recognize the main hook for "Drumsticks", as its the very same one that collective used in their video to promote the album. A far-Eastern flute-sample not unlike something you'd hear in a vintage Wu-Tang Clan (except here the production is clearer), each rapping member gets their turn for the spotlight over the track. "The Wren", on the other hand, features band member Dessa the most prominently for track of lost love and regret.

Listen to the two tracks at the band's MySpace Page.

Doomtree is out on July 29th.

Doomtree MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)

Doomtree Announces New Album...And This Time, We're Absolutely Sure of It

It's kind of amazing what you miss when you take a few days off from music blogging. For starters, the local news that hip-hop collective Doomtree will, in fact, be releasing their self-titled debut record on July 29th of this year, as previously announce, albeit in highly cryptic fashion. The 21-track album will be the first record released by the entire collective, after several False Hopes records by Doomtree members, including poet/emcee Dessa, as well as solo albums by the likes of P.O.S., who has put out two albums via Rhymesayers. The band will be celebrating Doomtree in August, with a record release party at First Avenue. The 18+ show will set you back $8, and will start at 8 p.m. Opening will be Kill The Vultures and I Self Devine.

Here's the tracklisting for the set (via Switchblade Comb):

1. Close Your Ears (intro)
2. Drumsticks
3. Gander Back
4. The Wren
5. Gameshow Host
6. Dots & Dashes
7. Game Over
8. Real Class (interlude)
9. Last Call
10. Accident
11. Sadie Hawkins
12. The Walrus (interlude)
13. Twentyfourseven
14. Let Me Tell You, Baby
15. Down the Line
16. Kid Gloves
17. Pop Gun War
18. Reintroduction
19. Liver Let Die
20. I’m Talking
21. Jaded

In what should be excellent news for fans, given the group's reputation for award-winning live shows, is that Doomtree will be playing Doomtree. Check out the group's MySpace Page for the deets.

Check out the album cover here:



Pre-order Doomtree here

In other Doomtree member news, emcee Mike Mictlan guests on the latest installment of Toki Wright's "Best Week Ever" series. Download the track at Wright's MySpace Page.

Doomtree is out on July 29th.

Doomtree MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)
Jon@minneapolisfuckingrocks.com

Mike Mictlan and Lazerbeak of Doomtree Announce New Project

Stream: Hand Over Fist - "Prize Fight"

Doomtree, the up-and-coming Minneapolis-based hip-hop collective, sure know how to get the attention of its fans, even if its not necessarily in the most direct fashion. Perhaps we're all on a need-to-know basis right now with the group. Based on the MySpace Bulletin the group sent out, the most urgent piece of news that needs to spread is the formation of a new group called Hand Over Fist. The duo consists of members Mike Mictlan and Lazerbeak, one of the emcees and the producer of Doomtree, respectively.

No word on a potential release date for an album filled with new material, but if you want to hear some music, head over to the Hand Over Fist MySpace Page. There, you can stream a new song from the group called "Prize Fight".

Like many of Doomtree's other songs, including "Flex" and "I'm Talking", "Prize Fight" main theme is about persevering in the face of existential hardship. Indeed, while the first main refrain is "I don't know what I'm doing/but I keep my eyes on the prize", and Mictlan memorably laments "I promised my girl the world/but I only gave her insanity", by the end of the 70s-soul-meets-modern-day-hip-hop track (and after a breakdown consisting of piano, guitar, and a sped-up sample), Mike defiantly states that he "keeps (his) eye on the prize/could never give this up".

Whether the "this" in the lyric refers to life itself, or being in a successful hip-hop group, doesn't matter, as "Prize Fight" shows that Mictlan and company have plenty of good reasons to keep fighting the good fight.

Listen to "Prize Fight" at the Hand Over Fist MySpace Page.

Doomtree MySpace Page
Hand Over Fist MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)

Doomtree Announce New Album...Or Do They?

Hmm...I can't decide whether this is cryptic in a humble kind of way--i.e., "if you build it, they will come--or if this is announcement is mysteriously annoying. Either way, the promise of a new album by MPLS-based hip-hop collective Doomtree is a prospect that's definitely worth getting excited about. The group, and its cast of thousands, posted the image you see above with only the words "7.29.08" in the subject line, on the band's MySpace bulletin.

So what's the significance of the date? Only time will tell. But hey, July 29th is an excellent day already, because it's my birthday, as well as the birthday of several good friends (not the least of whom is the significant other of one April Wright, a standup guy if there ever was one). So that must be it. Doomtree is planning a birthday celebration for all of us. If they aren't, then that means we all get to do a Stephen Colbert-esque post about Who's Not Honoring Us Now?. In all seriousness, if the band keeps writing songs like "I'm Talking" (no longer available on the band's MySpace!), then this release is something to look forward to.

As soon as we find out things like tracklisting and title, we'll let you know.

Doomtree MySpace Page

(Jonathan Graef)
(jon@minneapolisfuckingrocks.com)