nickels in the oven

Danger Doom - The Mouse and the Mask
Released Oct. 11, 2005
on Epitaph

Two up-and-coming hip-hop superhumans joined forces to produce an album built around the surreal, late-night Adult Swim cartoons.

Beatmaker Danger Mouse came to prominence with the controversial Grey Album. Meanwhile, veteran emcee MF Doom teamed up with the equally-prolific Madlib to release 2004’s acclaimed Madvillainy.

The concept behind the aptly-named Danger Doom collaboration could have been catastrophic. In the end, it is both ludicrous and brilliant. The in-jokes, cameos and skits glue everything together. Listeners unfamiliar with the cartoon references may still laugh at the absurdity of it all.

Metal Face’s blunted wordplay never falters, and the often-missed subtleties make for repeated listenings. At the same time, DM’s whimsical production parallels the comic nature of the album. Neither sacrifices talent for novelty.

As expected, The Mouse and the Mask polarizes critics. All Music Guide calls it “the best album of the year in the hip-hop underground,” while The Guardian remains unamused.

Pitchfork finds a balance:

Danger Doom won’t change your life. It’s not as revealing as Doom’s other work, and Danger Mouse’s big, Technicolor productions here are a little too trivial to be immortal. But for what it attempts–which is basically a comedy record with no-joke skills–it exceeds expectations.

This is a bizarre hip-hop album for the insomniacs whose Friday nights blur into Saturday mornings.