Know Your Doomtree

Throughout the past five years, Doomtree has made its name around town as a shockingly prolific, nine-person hip-hop crew. Besides a plethora of solo albums and 2008's self-titled group effort, Doomtree is also up to the 15th of its False Hopes bootleg series. With so much material out there—official and unofficial, solo and group, it's difficult for a newcomer to know where to start. So, in anticipation of Doomtree Blowout V at First Avenue on Dec. 5, The A.V. Club came up with this primer on some of the best work from each MC, DJ, and beatmaker.

Cecil Otter
Cecil Otter approaches rap music with the skill of a poet and the seasoned depth of an old soul. The founding Doomtree member split duties with P.O.S. on the first record ever put together by the gradually evolving crew, the first in the long-running False Hopes series. While Doomtree members typically define their live shows with energetic performances, Cecil tends to lay back and methodically spit seedy tales of scorned love and bar scenes over acoustic guitar samples and dusty drum breaks. In 2008, his labored-over debut, Rebel Yellow, saw the light of day after a hard-drive crash had cost the intrepid artist a few years of work. Slowly but surely, the original vision for the album came back together, and it managed to catch the attention of Sage Francis' Strange Famous Records, which quickly signed the MC. Cecil doubles as a beatmaker and produced the entire album, which proved to be among the best to come out of Minnesota in a particularly prosperous year.
Featured track: "1999" from Rebel Yellow

P.O.S.
Around the time that Slug was first bringing hip-hop to the punk set with Seven's Travels on Epitaph Records, Stefon Alexander was crafting his debut, 2004's Ipecac Neat. Seeing a similar sense of urgency connecting punk and hip-hop, P.O.S. brought the genres together, catering to music fans in both camps with a sound that never seemed forced or artificial. Pissed Off Stef (or Product Of Society, Promise Of Skill, or any number of alternatives depending on his particular mood) has earned his ascent to nationally recognized rapper through a decade of vibrant performances. Before forming Doomtree with his friends, he made a name for himself in the local hip-hop scene, earning City Pages' Best Band To Break Up In The Last Twelve Months for his short-lived team-up with rapper Syst in Cenospecies, and making a strong cameo on Heiruspecs' Small Steps. All the while, he has remained true to his punk-rock roots, screaming his lungs out in Building Better Bombs, which is unsurprisingly as forward-thinking as his rapping.
Featured track: "Half-Cocked Concepts" from Audition

Sims
Released on the heels of Ipecac Neat, Sims' debut, Lights Out Paris, was the album that posited P.O.S. as a member of a larger group and positioned Doomtree for its eventual rise to fame. The 2005 album is a relatable tale of urban strife in Bush-era America, strengthened by the skilled rapper's heart-on-sleeve approach and passionate delivery. The populist anger and everyman frustration in Sims' raps come forward powerfully, using hip-hop as a way to shine light on society's ills and to purge his own demons. Since then, Sims has released a False Hopes disc and is gearing up for a full-length follow-up in 2010.
Featured track: "Osmosis" from Lights Out Paris

Lazerbeak
Aaron "Lazerbeak" Mader coined the term "lavabangers" to describe his beats, which are massive. The beatmaker's impact on Doomtree is ever-present: He's contributed to nearly every album the crew has put out to date. His beats are often guitar-driven, with big drums and dense layers of samples. The signature style can be traced to Mader's roots in punk combo The Plastic Constellations, as well as his unabashed love for Jay-Z. Mictlan's debut, Hand Over Fist, was also a debut of sorts for Beak, who produced every song on the album. He's since taken over Sims' latest, as well as Chicago up-and-comer Flukey Stokes. His official debut solo album is expected to arrive in 2010.
Featured track: "Fire On The Watermark" from Hand Over Fist

Dessa
A former member of Medida, Dessa Darling fused her poetry skills with singing and rapping long prior to her invitation to join the fledgling crew. Now a teacher at McNally Smith College Of Music in its innovative hip-hop scholarship program, she's also contributed her singing voice to hooks and in the all-girl a cappella group The Boy Sopranos. She's also released a book of poetry, Spiral Bound, showcasing her roots as a spoken-word poet. But in Doomtree, Dessa has also proven her prowess as a rapper, spinning tales of jilted love and bittersweet reflections, as well as the occasional rapid-fire boom-bap track.
Featured track: "Veteran" from False Hopes: Doomtree

MK Larada
MK Larada (formerly known as Marshall Larada) acts as both producer and in-house graphic designer, creating much of the crew's brand through tightly conceived and sometimes haunting imagery. At Doomtree Blowout IV, his wings-and-teeth logo came to life as a three-dimensional model with a six-foot wingspan, which descended on First Avenue. His DJ album, Break In Two: Music For B-People, showcases his love for break-dancing music, mixing a variety of mid-‘80s jams and contemporary dance songs (the P.O.S./Daft Punk mash-up is a highlight). As a beatmaker, Larada is just as captivating, counting several classic Doom tracks to his name.
Featured track: "Slow Burn" from False Hopes: Doomtree

Turbo Nemesis
Whenever you hear a badass scratch on a Doomtree song, there's a good chance it's coming from the crew's resident turntablist and evil genius Turbo Nemesis. From his early days rolling with P.O.S. in the group Cenospecies, Turbo has stayed close with the Doomtree crew, deftly handling the 1's and 2's on nationwide tours and providing the cuts on most recordings. Turbo worked with P.O.S. to mix the Meat Tape series, sold on P.O.S.' tour and presented as a mixtape one would make for a friend.
Featured track: "Turbo Vs. Buckethead Pt. 2" from Meat Tape 1

Mictlan
With his lightning-fast rhyme patterns, adept lyrical prowess, and hard-hitting delivery, Mike Mictlan brings the gangster rap edge that keeps Doomtree from sliding down the precarious slope into emo-rap territory. The Los Angeles transplant, who moved back to Minnesota on the strength of his old friends in Doomtree gaining prominence, sounds like he emerged from the womb rapping, touting an experienced and methodical style that is never less than commanding. On his 2008 debut with producer Lazerbeak, Hand Over Fist, the rapper also known as BAMF The Butcher crafted an instant classic that blended political themes, life experiences, and exceptional wordplay.
Featured track: "Game Over" from Doomtree

Paper Tiger
While producer and DJ Paper Tiger's work with the MCs of Doomtree often showcases his energetic side (see "Game Over"), when left to his own devices the spectacled craftsman tends to produce darker and more introspective sounds, reminiscent of the sampled soundscapes of DJ Shadow or the glitch-y chill of Four Tet. Tiger's contribution to the False Hopes series features deep, haunting instrumentals that highlight his versatility as a beatmaker, as concerned with rocking the party as he is accompanying the lonely walk home.
Featured track: "Cannonade" from False Hopes: Paper Tiger