REVIEW: The Mouse and the Mask

Dangerdoom
The Mouse and the Mask
© 2005 Epitaph

MF Doom is known for his dense, witty raps and clever use of samples from classic cartoons. Danger Mouse is known for his unique production style, skillfully shaping music with a directorial vision full of humor and deft experimentation. A collaboration between the two would seem to be natural fit. However, rather than through an independent effort, such as Doom’s Madvillain or Mouse’s Gnarls Barkley, the union that is Danger Doom’s album, The Mouse and the Mask, is centered around the Adult Swim line-up, raising the concern, “Does the album rise to the level of talent we would expect from its principle artists, or does it falter beneath its license?”

The Mouse and the Mask largely succeeds. In fact, this may be the best original album/advertisement for current television that I have heard. Not the most distinguished competition, to be sure, but a success is a success. Adult Swim fans who enjoy hip-hop would be remise if they did not purchase this album. In addition to clips and sketches featuring the Adult swim characters interspersed throughout the album, many songs are specifically about the Adult Swim shows. For example, check out “A.T.H.F,” Danger Doom’s track dedicated to everyone’s favorite mildly sociopathic fast food, the Aqua Teen Hunger Force.

“A.T.H.F.”


But what of those who do not care for the misadventures of the Sealab crew or the quest for perfect hair? Is there enough here to entertain non-fans? Unfortunatly for them, the album—beyond the sketches—is often overt in its Adult Swim references, though this is not a consistent trait. The Mouse and the Mask tends to swing between the heavy referentiality (with “A.T.H.F.” standing as the extreme) to none at all (as in “The Mask”).

“The Mask (feat. Ghostface Killah)” (Fan video)


Those familiar with Doom’s work, particularly Mm… Food and its effective use of samples that worked within a metaphor or joke, rather than defining the song, may be disappointed by these extremes. There are moments where Danger Doom is able to balance these traits effectively—such as “Basket Case” which, while using clips from Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law, is not about the show—but they are in the minority.

“Basket Case” (Fan video)


It is worth noting that The Mouse and the Mask includes guest vocals—an often abused gimmick—from Ghostface Killah, Cee-Lo, and Talib Kweli. Fortunately, both Doom and Mouse are no strangers to working with guest artists. Ghostface’s appearance can be seen above in “The Mask” and his voice and style meshes smoothly with Doom’s. I would have liked to Cee-Lo as more than a backing voice on “Benzie Box,” but it is nonetheless an effective use of Green’s distinct voice. Talib Kweli’s appearance is a little less cleanly integrated, but the song, “Old School” provides a commentary on the importance of cartoons that resonates well with the album’s theme.

Beyond the lyrics, the music of the album flows nicely. Interestingly, Danger Doom has avoided sampling music from the cartoons themselves, instead relying heavily on a mixture of complex, layered beats and samples from 70s Funk and Jazz. This is for the best, as these are the sounds both MF Doom and Danger Mouse typically work with. In fact, the music is Hip-Hop of the highest caliber and easily the album’s strongest point. It forms a connective tissue that never lets down, even in songs with weaker vocal tracks.

Ultimately, The Mouse and the Mask is a solid album. The combined skill of MF Doom and Danger Mouse prevent this album from being shameless fan-service, but the inconsistent use of Adult Swim properties result in a sound that is not enough for Adult Swim fans, but still too much for the uninitiated.

RECCOMENDED IF… you are at least familiar with the Adult Swim lineup. Though not all songs lean on the them heavily, there are so many Adult Swim references and jokes that it is difficult to recommend The Mouse and the Mask to those who could care less about Brak’s antics.

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