Originally released September 16, 2003

Reissued August 18, 2023

Rhymesayers

2xLP (Silver Vinyl)

In the years since MF DOOM’s death, critical reappraisal of his albums have been fixated on what, exactly, was his best. The obvious choice is Madvillainy, which is probably right. But in the case that it’s not right, then perhaps Vaudeville Villain is the right choice. It’s got all the great markings of a premiere DOOM project (a fittingly absurd concept, off the wall beats that wouldn’t really make sense with anyone else, off-kilter non sequiturs that shouldn’t rhyme but somehow do, extreme comic book references). It follows DOOM (as titular anti-hero Viktor Vaughn), trapped in 1960’s New York jumping between get-rich-quick schemes in attempt to scrounge up enough money to fix his time machine. If it sounds silly, it’s because it is. But some of the best albums of all time are silly. There’s a strong argument that Vaudeville Villain has a place among them.