A Lighter Shade of DOOM

When DOOM released Born Like This earlier this year, his first record in four years, the rapper formerly known as MF Doom dished on anarchy, violence and homophobia. In short, the project stunk of hatred and pessimism. Unexpected Guests, a collection of Born b-sides, remixes and other oddball tracks, couldn’t be more different. It’s shorter, more diverse and mercifully goofy.

Guests is structured as a scattershot mix tape, a medium that suits DOOM better than the full-length. Songs dissipate just as they break a sweat and give way to a B-movie sound clip or a wordless coda. The bombastic horn samples of Born Like This are mostly gone, replaced by jazzy keyboard lines (“Sorcerers”) and slow-motion upright bass (“Street Corners (DOOM Remix)”).

Even in its scathing political critiques, Born was far too stoned to deliver any affective social message, much less a coherent verse. Guests doesn’t even feign substance, with DOOM rhyming about everything from a pants-less Nancy Drew to the cleanliness of his metal mask.

This sense of flippancy pervades nearly every song, most enjoyably on the honky-tonk “Da Superfriendz,” which could have been the soundtrack to “Peanuts” if Charlie Brown grew up in a Long Island ghetto.

Speaking of “friendz,” there are too many cameos here to count. Most notable are J Dilla’s production on “Sniper Elite” and Ghostface Killah’s (rather lame) verses in “Angels.” DOOM’s throaty rasp is distinct but grating, and it’s a joy to hear such a communal record from such an eccentric character.

Of course, DOOM has never been consistently great, and Guests has its share of flubs. Tellingly, songs with longer run times are usually the weakest: “Project Jazz” proves hip-hop and smooth-jazz muzak an ill-advised combination, while “My Favorite Ladies” dips its toe in misogyny.

Conversely, Guests shines brightest in glimpses of rhythm and melody in condensed tracks like “Quite Buttery” and “Yikes.” DOOM and his contemporaries have a lot of interesting sonic ideas, but the rapper has learned (probably from Dilla’s Donuts) the value of scarcity and doesn’t allow these tunes to outstay their welcome.

The record is an adequate retrospective of DOOM’s career, showcasing his perverted-soul beats and his weirdo rhymes. DOOM always forgoes club-bangers in favor of head-scratchers like “Bell of Doom” or the whimsical “Black Gold,” which is why critics love him.

Unexpected Guests, like the rest of the rapper’s work, is special in its sense of adventure and expedition. The B-side wins again!