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I have been listening to Mike Doughty sing songs for more
than two decades now. In some ways, that seems like a long time to
follow one guy doing what he does... but Doughty always seems to find
a way to refresh what he is doing, make something old seem somewhat
new and vibrant. In fact, that is probably the best word I could find
to describe Doughty: Vibrant.
If you're new to the Doughty tip (although I don't see how that could
be possible), then here is a short refresher course. Doughty started
back in the 1990s with his band Soul Coughing. They made some
amazing acid jazzy records filled with catchy beat poet lyrics and
groovy samples. Then Doughty went solo, recorded an acoustic album
and self-released it long before the internet made that a plausible
thing to do. Then Doughty recorded some more albums, signed with pal
Dave Matthews' label, made some more records, left said label,
made another record, self-released a bunch of demos through his website
to his best fans, re-recorded a bunch of Soul Coughing tunes and released
a cool record of that, and all of this was done while maintaining
one of the best touring presences in the history of modern rock and
roll. The “Question Jar Tours”, wherein Doughty answers
questions that audience members or internet stalkers have left for
him in between songs is always a good night of fun. There are a lot
of haters in the world who claim to not like Doughty for a number
of reasons, but I laugh them in the face and proclaim simply that
Doughty, unlike so many, continues to turn out great music that is
easy to listen to and honestly, a ton of fun.
That leads us to Stellar Motel. Released in the late summer
of 2014 amid said Question Jar tour, Stellar Motel has a little
bit of a lot going on. Doughty takes his turn trying out some hip
hop, and does an admirable job, taking a genre that tends to lack
musicality and turning in some brilliant tunes, laden with catchy
grooves and some great rapping. “The Champion” is more of
a Doughty ballad, lush with strings and clever lyrics until ¾
of the way through when MC Frontalot chimes in and offers up
a smooth guest rap. “Pretty Wild” is more what one might
expect from hip hop, and features Doughty rapping, joined by Clare
Bizna$$ and Ash Wednesday. “Let Me Lie” finds
Doughty throwing down some rap over a weirdly cool Atari-inspired
electronic beat, more reminiscent of Kraftwerk than 50Cent,
but when guest Big Dipper drops in to lend a rap, things get
a bit more urban.
About one half of the album leans towards this experimental hip hop
and the remainder of the record stays more in what would be considered
more traditional Doughty territory. The lead single from the album
was “Light Will Keep Your Heart Beating In The Future” and
what a song to kick the album off! Dirty drums and clanging banjos
carry almost the entire song, with Doughty spitting out some of his
finest poetry in a few albums. “When The Night Is Long”
turns up the anthemic spirit, filled with chiming guitars, lush strings,
and a driving beat. This song builds on the same kind of spirit that
one of my favorite Doughty tunes, “I Hear The Bells,” also
contains. This song stands in stark contrast to the song that immediately
follows it, “Oh My God Yeah Fuck It.” This song is an exercise
in rhythmic noisiness and fun, featuring street jazz ensemble Moon
Hooch and Miss Eaves. This one might be a bit harsh to
get through, especially since it follows such a smooth bit of pop,
but once things get rolling Doughty's rapping and Moon Hooch's wailing
saxophones make for a very nice and highly artistic and irreverent
take on hip hop. Miss Eaves is great, and her raps are perfect.
After some 20 years, most artists tend to lose a bit of the sharpness
off of their teeth, but not Doughty. He continues to explore music
in a highly artistic and poetic way, not constraining himself to one
particular style of music or one instrument. His programming remains
interesting, his lyrics remain graphic and acute, his voice is better
than ever as his singing continues to grow and mature in depth. Stellar
Motel might have some challenging moments for casual listeners,
but those that have been with Doughty for the long haul understand
that this is his art, and well worth every moment.
-Embo Blake
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