Here Comes the Fuzz

KMD Peachfuzz (Music Video)
From Mr. Hood [Elektra, 1991]

I think when KMD (Zevlove X, DJ Subroc, and Onyx) dropped their 1991 debut Mr. Hood, heads weren't ready, and because hip hop in the mainstream was really in its experimental phase, record labels and execs stubborn to relinquish artistic freedom, Elektra did what they did to many hip hop artists and dropped them before their follow-up, Black Bastards, was released. Tragically Subroc was killed in a car accident which pushed Zevlove to take a break from the recording industry, only to resurface years later as the masked alter ego now known as MF Doom, now one of the most prolific artists in the game today. A much more detailed history of KMD and the evolution of Doom can be found here.

Mr. Hood and Black Bastards are now considered classics, and "Peachfuzz" was one of the few singles to ever be made into a music video. In fact it may be the only one. This is the only time I've seen Doom in his unmasked and lanky incarnation, the sounds and rhymes clearly harking back to the crispness of hip hop's golden era. I'll admit, it took me a while to appreciate these guys, but everything about the music puts a smile on my face. I hear there's a new KMD release in the works as well; whether or not Doom will revert back to Zevlove and remove the iron mask is unclear.