MF Doom: Born Like This (2LP) [LEX]

Why you'll love it

This 10th anniversary edition packs the 2LP set, a 7" flexi disc, a push-out mask and a foil sticker into an embossed, foil-blocked sleeve. It was Doom's sixth and final solo album, and Pitchfork named it one of the best albums of 2009.

This edition

• 2LP set
• 10th anniversary edition
• Bonus 7" flexi disc
• Push-out mask and foil sticker
• Embossed, foil-blocked sleeve
• Lyrics included

About the album

Not many rap albums take their title from Charles Bukowski. Born Like This borrows a line from his poem Dinosauria, We, and "Cellz" opens with Bukowski himself reading it. Credited simply to Doom, the album arrived on Lex Records in March 2009 and debuted at No. 52 on the Billboard 200.

Doom produced much of it himself as Metal Fingers, with J Dilla beats on "Gazzillion Ear" and "Lightworks," Madlib on "Absolutely" and Jake One on "Ballskin" and "Rap Ambush." Raekwon drops in on "Angelz," Posdnuos and Prince Paul turn up under aliases on "Supervillainz," a young Paloma Faith plays Cat-Girl, and "That's That" borrows dialogue from Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

Metacritic scored it 77, and The Skinny put it at No. 4 of 2009. Paloma Faith's later fame makes the Cat-Girl cameo a nice bit of trivia. Doom spent his career behind a metal mask; this edition hands you a cardboard one, which is as close as most of us will get to the job.

Also at Kops: more MF Doom on vinyl · browse Hip Hop / R&B

Tracklist

Listen

On Lex (cat# LEX069LP), a reissue of the 2009 album.