The Venerable Viktor Vaughn And His Vicarious Ventures

Viktor Vaughn.

Part mad scientist from the future.

Part twisted ghetto inhabitant, nefarious stick-up kid, and bizarre B-boy.

2003 brought us "Vaudeville Villain", a collaboration between MF Doom and Sound Ink Records. With slick, high-tech beats provided by the likes of King Honey, Heat Sensor and even RJD2, and imaginative rhyming courtesy of Viktor Vaughn (one of MF Doom's numerous aliases), "Vaudeville Villain" was one of the year's best releases. "VV2: Venomous Villain" is a sequel of sorts, this time in conjunction with Insomniac Records. And instead of being a long player like the original Vaughn album, this release is an EP. With the bar being set to such ridiculous heights by this year's "Madvillainy" (a joint effort with fellow beatmaker/emcee Madlib), there's lots of excitement for more Vik and his whacky adventures. Unfortunately, what we _get_ isn't quite what we _expected_.

"Vaudeville Villain" was characterized by unique production and a strange but entirely intriguing atmosphere. Hard breaks, programmed synthesizers, almost futuristic loops lent for a fitting, sinister vibe that Viktor Vaughn understood beautifully. Unlike the more traditional Doom and the Geedorah characters, Viktor is a womanizing, take-no-bullsh*t, pistol toting, mysterious and deranged emcee. And all of this translates into his lyrics, "Back End" captures Vik's paranoid schizophrenia, where anyone, even the Fed Ex guy, could be part of the FBI spying on you, trying to cramp your hustle. Because the whole world is out to get you, of course.

When Viktor Vaughn gets on a track, you better run for cover. You want quotables? How about entire tracks full of 'em. "Fall Back/Titty Fat" is a menacing cut where Vik doesn't really stick to one topic, but dances around from subject to subject — there are brief glimpses of deadly battle rhymes ("Call or fax for the freshest rhyme delivery/ Or take out for the fake you out ballers in the industry"), examples of Viktor's trademark imagery ("Everytime he thinks his third eye blinks/ It must be in the blood like zinc/ Glassy eyed V put your CD on jinx"), and Viktor's interstellar rhyme schemes would make any hip-hop scholar from the 24th century proud. Speaking of imagery, there's plenty on "Ode To Road Rage", as Doom swerves to avoid drunk drivers and struggles to dodge old ladies crossing the street you can't help but fear for your own life. The streets are't a safe place when Viktor's on the loose.

The beats on "VV2: Venomous Villain" help create this dark, futuristic atmosphere that suits Viktor so well. In construction, they are more complex than those on "Vaudeville Villain", there is more going on. Lots of cutting-edge distortions and glitch elements are liberally sprinkled throughout the EP, with no example better than the "Viktormizer (Intro)" itself. You've got your usual obscure movie samples that add dimension to the character of Viktor Vaughn, and the underlying production is constantly evolving. The shadowy drums cut in and out, slightly changing patterns as the track progresses, and murky violins come in about half way through — there's lots of texture here, and with sounds of an occasional beat "malfunction" or a split-second record "warp" (think of an evil, vindictive Prefuse 73), "Venomous Villain" is certainly a unique EP.

Unfortunately, there are some large problems that the EP suffers from.

There's simply not enough Vik!!

In King Geedorah tradition, "Venomous Villain" features a ton of guest emcees. Most are talented enough, but often Viktor ends up sandwiched between guests with little time on the track. "Pop Quiz (Remix)" is a great cut, but it's basically an Iz-Real song featuring MF Doom. "Bloody Chain" is split into two halves, Viktor's verse (a grizzly tale of karma) is deadly and succinct but guest Poison Pen delivers completely unrelated rhymes that don't fit with the track. Half of the track is excellent, half is skippable. Manchild and Iz-Real also appear on "R.A.P.G.A.M.E", and while it's a strong showing from the three emcees, it doesn't fit thanks to its smooth jazz piano keys. On an album of such dastardly proportions, it sticks out like a sore thumb and screams "I don't belong here!"

Doom is normally a stickler for continuity, so when I heard Manchild refer to him as _MF Doom_ on a _Viktor Vaughn_ record, that's some major carelessness. And then on the "Pop Quiz (Remix)", Viktor calls himself Metal Face and it's a Doom verse, _not_ something Viktor would do. That in itself is a paradox, since Vik isn't someone that seems like he'd be cool sharing the mic with many emcees, let alone MF Doom. I mean, on "Vaudeville Villain" Viktor Vaughn was the crazy emcee who shot up an entire club on an open mic night while he was dropping his verses! No, these aren't the biggest problems a record could have, but since Iz-Real is the EP's executive producer it seems like he grabbed a few tracks him and Doom did in the past and simply slapped them on the release, regardless of suitability.

Sure, it might not be the most cohesive EP out there, nor the longest musically (there are two very short and pointless interludes, nothing like what we're used to from Doom, effectively giving us nine actual songs), but there's quality music from the underground's biggest rebel on "Venomous Villain", especially the blazing "Doper Skiller", which features the one and only Kool Keith. Besides it being the the first collaboration between the two, which has been a dream of Doom and Keith fans for years now, both emcees must have missed a meal or two before recording the track as both sound as hungry as ever, especially Kool Keith, who gives his most energized performance in quite a while. Plus, the thick synths and techno-slash-glitch-like production is bananas like a split.

While not as impressive as the original "Vaudeville Villain" its a worthy purchase for Doom heads and those looking for something unique and fresh. Just don't blame me when you begin to go mental and start imagining FBI agents around the corner, tapping into your phone, and dressing up as old ladies attempting to cross the street.

3 Stars

Other reviews of MF Doom related material:

Madvillain - Madvillainy

Viktor Vaughn - Vaudeville Villain

King Geedorah - Take Me To Your Leader

MF Doom - Operation: Doomsday

K.M.D. - Black Bastards