Review: Danger Doom, The Mouse
and the Mask, Epitaph

Inspired by Adult Swim, Cartoon Network's late-night animation block, The Mouse and the Mask is a collaboration between Danger Mouse (Brian Burton) and MF Doom (Daniel Dumile).

Adult Swim includes such pot smoker favorites as Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, and Harvey Birdman Attorney at Law.

Character voices, like Master Shake and Brak, all make appearances, along with such real-life musicians as Mark Linkous/Sparklehorse, Ghostface Killah ("The Mask"), Cee-Lo Green ("Benzie Box"), Talib Kweli ("Old School"), and Money Mark ("No Names"). For the most part, the cartoon voices are kept to a minimum, so they're not as irritating as you might think.

There's nothing earth shattering going on here, but The Mouse and the Mask features sweet beats and typically bizarro lyrics, like "midgets into crunk" ("El Chupa Nibre"), "hills spills muddle flows" ("Mince Meat), and "the gem drop of well spit" ("Bada Bing").

Highlights include "Benzie Box," with its Funkadelic/Outkast swing (dig that "la-la-la" chorus), and "Space Ho's" with its sprightly rhythm and Morricone whistling ("It ain't Doom Coast to Coast!").



Note: For more info, please visit the official Danger Doom site. Danger, in Donnie Darko garb, from the Gnarls Barkley site.