There was a time when EVERYONE knew who Kool Keith was and his records were hunted like lost relics. Well, a lot of people still know who he is, but the quality of his output has waned since the late nineties. The mystique surrounding projects like Dr. Octagon and the Ultramagnetic MCs is as strong as ever though, with Keith’s perverted sense of humor and scatological references thrilling and/or disgusting hip-hop heads the world over. Godfather Don is known less by the masses but just as equally revered in hip-hop circles. A rapper in his own right as well as a member of The Groove Merchantz, Don produced the Ultramagnetic’s Four Horsemen album, which led to he and Keith deciding to take their collaboration further.
Being frequent guests on the Stretch and Bobbito Show, Keith and Don created over an album’s worth of tracks for exclusive play on the show and named themselves The Cenobites, all with a Hellraiser reference included. The tracks were never intended for release but, after an outrageously positive response by fans and DJs alike, Bobbito convinced Keith and Don otherwise and put seven Cenobites tracks out as the first release on Fondle ‘Em, his very own, predominantly vinyl only record label. The record, of which around 3000 copies were pressed, was so popular that it became one of the few Fondle ‘Em releases to be issued on CD. All in all, The Cenobites became a true underground classic.
Despite the underground praise, The Cenobites never became a household name like Dr. Octagon. You can blame that on a lack of finances or promotion as well as the material not being radio friendly, but in reality it was probably by design. After all, MF Doom put Operation: Doomsday out on Fondle ‘Em and that’s a well-known underground classic, but not everyone makes music for the money. Now don’t read into that statement too deep, I’m not calling Doom a sellout or anything, but when the money is good, you love what you’re doing and people want to hear your stuff, you can’t be blamed for making it easier to find, but not everyone is so concerned with such details.
In the years after, Keith proceeded to release a ridiculous number of records and erode his reputation, while Don helped produce Screwball before disappearing from the world of hip-hop. Luckily, in recent years, some enterprising heads managed to hunt him down and release some archival works of his, including some unreleased Cenobites tracks, but that record, the Demented Thoughts EP, was limited to 200 copies, making it near mythical. Thanks though to the power of the internet, just because you can’t get an original copy doesn’t mean you can’t get a good rip to check out.
The Cenobites may never be as popular as Dr. Octagon, MF Doom, the Wu or any other big name indie rappers, but their records deserve to be heard. So, today I present to you a fresh rip of the CD version of The Cenobites LP, a good rip of the primarily Don-dominated Demented Thoughts EP, and some decent quality radio rips of additional, otherwise unreleased tracks recorded specifically the Stretch and Bobbito Show. I hope you find this stuff as fun and demented as I do, but be forewarned that if you’re expecting some gangsterisms and bullshit that you’re looking in the wrong place. Don might not be too crazy, but Keith is in exceptionally weird form. Just check out Mommy and you’ll know what I’m talking about.
The Cenobites - The Cenobites LP
Part One
Part Two
01 Lex Lugor
02 I Was Forgotten
03 Kick A Dope Verse (feat. Bobbito)
04 Mommy
05 You're Late (feat. Percee P)
06 Rhymes I Sniff A.K.A. Carlos Died
07 Keep On (feat. Bobbito)
08 How The Fuck You Get A Deal
09 Kick A Dope Verse (Battered Baby Seal Remix)
10 Return To Zero
The Cenobites - Demented Thoughts EP
01 Hawaii (feat. Bobbito)
02 MC's Out To Murder The World
03 Don, Don, Don
04 That's How I'm Goin' Out
05 Hot Crib Promo (feat. Cage)
06 Slaves (Original Mix)
The Cenobites - Outtakes
01 You Lose
02 Lazy Woman
03 Cold Peein' On 'Em
04 Break 'Em Down
05 We Can Do This (feat. Mike L and TR Love)
06 Slaves
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