KMD—essentially the brainchild of brothers Daniel “Zev Love X” and Dingilizwe “DJ Subroc” Dumile, along with with Onyx the Birthstone Kid—were hard at work on the follow-up to their mostly brilliant debut Mr. Hood when Subroc was killed, hit by a car.
Zev Love X soldiered on, completing the album alone, and Bl_ck B_st_rds was originally slated for release in May of 1994. But the album was shelved, the group dropped by its label, allegedly due to the controversial cover art (above). It would not see release until 2000.
Meanwhile, the group disbanded, and Daniel Dumille disappeared from the hip hop scene entirely, sleeping on the streets of Manhattan and eventually moving to Atlanta.
Dumille, as is well known in underground hip hop circles, would reappear several years later, incognito, first disguising himself with tights over his head and later donning a mask based on the Marvel supervillain Doctor Doom. As MF DOOM and other aliases, Dumille would release at least one masterpiece—Madvillainy, a collaboration with Madlib—and several other classic underground hip hop albums. He died in 2020.
KMD (which stands for Kausing Much Damage, or perhaps A Positive Kause in a Much Damaged Society) may have only released two albums, but they are an essential hip hop listen. Mr. Hood weaves a hilarious sequence of skits centered around the titular character, spliced from a learn-to-speak-English recording. Bl_ck B_st_rds arguably boasts more consistent songs.
Enjoy.
Cover Art:
- Bl_ck B_st_rds: Source, Discogs.com, Fair Use.
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