The many faces of Doomtree captivated the crowd at Underground Arts

Doomtree | Photo by Matthew Shaver | brightloud.com

Did you ever sit down with a group of friends in high school and just say “we should start a band?”  Most of never made anything of it, but Doomtree took an unlikely group of allies and turned them in to a beacon of hope in the Midwest for a city not necessarily known for being a mecca of hip-hop (at least until Rhymesayers came along) . Hailing from Minneapolis, the 7 members (and friends) of Doomtree bring unique personalities and experiences together to form a sort of Hieroglyphics by way of The Decemberists mishmash of classic battle rap styles over beats laced with folk, jazz, punk, and with their most recent release All Hands, a little bit of techno. 

And so, with boisterous applause, Dessa, Mike Micltan, P.O.S., Cecil Otter, Sims, Lazerbeak, and Paper Tiger descended upon Underground Arts, and blessed Philadelphia with rhymes so dope, the Pope himself would concede the stage.  I mean, really, holy shit they were amazing.  They landed with so much energy that I’m honestly not sure if UA was only half full, or if everybody was so crammed together to get as close to the stage as possible that it just seemed like it. Landing with sledgehammer singles like “Bangarang,”  “Bolt Cutter,” and “Little Mercy” from the seminal underground hit No Kings and taking off with the gigantic sounds of “Final Boss” from their new release, I swear I was wearing a birthday sized grin on my face the entire time.

Each personality got time to shine throughout the night, mostly together, sometimes alone in the spotlight.

Dessa – a fan favorite with the heart of a poet and the voice of a diva

P.O.S. – is a punk rocker with a hip-hop heart like a Beastie Boy

Sims – the feisty kid who was left to stand on his own, but somehow always kept up on his studies

Mike Mictlan – the fighter of the group, came up hard but pulled himself out of it

Cecil Otter – Jack of all trades -wordsmith, beat maker, professor of hip-hop narratives

Lazerbeak and Paper Tiger bring it all together as the glue that binds the voices together, and brings all of the unique perspectives together with a prolific and eclectic group of beats and sounds that are ever evolving.

Speedy Ortiz was a suitably off-kilter opening act for Doomtree.  Powering through a heavy set of angular noise rock, frontwoman / guitarist Sadie Dupuis, drummer Mike Falcone, bassist Darl Ferm, and guitarist Devin McKnight sought to remind everybody that hip-hop and indie rock aren’t competitors, but allies that should work to elevate their audiences.

Serengeti’s shy nature and “rapper with an iPod” entrance belies a talented rapper who has a hefty discography that includes work with Son Lux and Sufjan Stevens.  Despite the pedigree, he seemed oddly uncomfortable on stage which was both whimsical and disarming. The Chicago native made his way through a solid set of new and old songs before abruptly stopping, jumping in to the crowd, and making his way in to the night.