47.

Doseone
Skeleton Repellent
(Self Released, 2008)

I was a latecomer to this solo album from Subtle/cLOUDDEAD emcee Doseone, otherwise it would have surely landed among the top listings of my year end roundup for 2008. Similar to his work with his alpha band on ExitingARM, Doseone’s aesthetic on Skeleton Repellent leans far more towards avant pop than his native hip hop, and with wonderful results. Skeleton Repellent shows off the talents of one of the busiest, most inventive, all-around artists of the decade creating a labyrinthine psych pop gem that has been sorely overlooked by the indie music industry at large. Definitely a must have for anyone who has been caught ogling the multitudinous and varied works of the incomparable Doseone.

-Thistle

Dose One - Skeleton Repellent

Dose One
Skeleton Repellent
(11.2007, Purple Guerrilla)
Verdict = A Creative Explosion

I don’t think I could be more excited for the new Subtle album due out in just a couple weeks now. The entire band is worthy of accolades, but it is lyricist Dose One that is the engine of the whole thing. Subtle would undoubtedly still be amazing without him, but with him the band is otherworldly. It is Dose One’s insane, fire eyed delivery and totally out there personality that makes Subtle one of the most electrifying and exciting live bands I’ve ever seen (check them at Urban on 5/12). And it isn’t just Subtle, pretty much everything the guy touches turns to gold, check it: Clouddead, 13 & God, Themselves, Deep Puddle Dynamics, his collaboration with Boom Bip and guest spots in all sorts of other unlikely places (Hood, Fog, Peeping Tom, Aesop Rock…). He has basically three or four lifetimes worth of amazing output. Yet, even with his lengthy, spotless resume, I have never caught one of his solo albums until now. Late last year Skeleton Repellent dropped with little fanfare which led me to believe that perhaps Dose just thrives on a collaborative atmosphere and can’t really pull off something so great by himself. Well, it’s a pretty ridiculous thought in retrospect, but let me just assure anyone else with similar doubts that Adam “Dose One” Drucker is a certified genius. Skeleton Repellent is an immaculate, creative masterpiece that verifies that Dose One isn’t simply a rapper, I think that has been clear for sometime actually, but Skeleton Repellent should further attest to the fact that Dose is simply a pop mastermind. The album flows beautifully through Dose One’s painstakingly multilayered vocals with an eccentric electronic backdrop. Initial it is a bit overwhelming to penetrate, but for anyone familiar with Subtle and Dose’s various other experimental excursions, Skeleton Repellent will be a severely rewarding journey. In fact, Subtle’s ExitingARM is going to have a tough time competing with this thing in my book. As good as anything he as ever done.

-Mr. Thistle

Dose One - "Overchoiced"