Album Review: Madvillainy

For readers of these album reviews, I want to start with the first week of every month with an “older” album, or what can be considered as a classic.

This month’s classic album comes from one of the most influential projects in underground rap history. “Madvilllainy” comes from Madvillain, the duo comprising of MF DOOM (your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper) and legendary producer Madlib.

“Madvillainy”, released in 2004, establishes DOOM’s flow and lyrical ability as well as Madlib’s production as top tier. Madlib gathered most of the beats used on this record while in a hotel room in Brazil, which adds yet another layer of mystery to this record. As both DOOM and Madlib were already making waves in the underground scene before they came together, this record was highly anticipated, perhaps almost to its demise. About 14 months before the album was released, a rough and unreleased demo leaked on the internet, which frustrated and made the duo step away from the project and work on their own individual projects. Luckily, the duo came back together, finished and released the record.

This record doesn’t necessarily follow a specific story, but more so consists of DOOM taking the listener on a stream-of-consciousness lyrical journey. This record presents some of the best flows and rhyme schemes not just from the underground scene, but from the history of hip-hop. Tracks like “Money Folder” and “Figaro” demonstrate some of the best rapping in DOOM’s discography.

However, we can’t give DOOM all the credit for the incredible quality of this record. Madlib brings some of the most interesting and hard-hitting fusions of jazz-rap and experimental hip-hop. Instrumentals on this record such as “Sickfit” and “Do Not Fire!” showcase Madlib’s incredible genre bending productions.

This record is a must listen for any fan of hip-hop. Rest in peace to DOOM as he passed in October 2020, and as he reminds us all on the track “All Caps”, “Just remember ALL CAPS when you spell the man name.”