DOOMSTARKS—the collaborative duo consisting of the Wu Tang Clan's Ghostface Killah and rapper/producer/supervillain DOOM—is one of the few hip hop projects that can elicit a childish, cereal-in-front-of-the-TV-on-a-Saturday-morning type glee from me. It might be the narrative; DOOM's streak of collaborations (Danger Doom, Madvillain, JJ DOOM, Nehruvian DOOM, et al.) have an air of "maybe he will return, maybe he won't" that rivals fan favorite TV shows like Firefly and Arrested Development. It's only right, then, that his latest cameo comes courtesy of Adult Swim's Singles project, with a limited 7" release coming courtesy of DOOM's gasdrawls.com and Metal Face/Nature Sound Records.
"Lively Hood" delivers on all fronts: DOOM's production is boisterous and swaggering, all horns and bravado; Ghostface is at his most comfortable—rapping about New York, naturally; and DOOM emerges as if from smoke to speak on his hometown. It sounds like the official soundtrack of the 2 a.m. bodega run—an ode to New York City, its boroughs and characters in all their gritty glory. And, much like Firefly, it's all over way too quickly, leaving a loyal audience asking and aching for more.
