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The Return is supposedly a Kool Keith album, but four of the 14 tracks are skits, two mangle his vocals so the producers can show off their DJing, and one is a Princess Superstar song with Keith on the hook.
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The Return of Dr. Octagon doesn't always make a lot of sense, but that's the beauty of it.
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The Return isn't the return we were waiting for, but it's another explosive collection of anti-hits from hip-hop's most unique voice.
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Dr. Octagon has once again put hip-hop under the knife and performed surgery on it.
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Taking into account the fact that there is probably 15-20 minutes worth of actual Kool Keith verses on this release it is completely unacceptable that this is being passed off as a full album.
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That Keith is capable of better records is a point proven by his past, but so far as 2006-born hip-hop goes, this is head and shoulders above much of the loudmouthed, uncouth and generic rabble.
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UrbThe Return shifts from the dusty, foreboding ambience created by Dan the Automator on Dr. Octagonecologyst into a contemporary world ripe with analog melodies and crisp, programmed beats. [Jul/Aug 2006, p.125]
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Q MagazineRap rarely comes more unedited and spontaneous. [Oct 2006, p.125]
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Surprisingly, the album's blend of Mitteleuropean melody and American eccentricity is diverting enough to overcome any misgivings.
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MojoThere's just enough twisted wit among the non sequiturs to redeem this controversial release. [Oct 2006, p.100]
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Rolling StoneOctagon's verses often feel unfocused and random, but when he bears down he can be mesmerizing. [13 Jul 2006, p.103]
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SpinFlavorsome but oddly ordinary. [Aug 2006, p.77]
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UncutKeith's interaction with his producers is minimal, and his creative control so thin that vocal parts often sound like samples. [Sep 2006, p.79]
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Alternative PressIt's hard enough to decipher his demented verses without constant interference from squelchy synth-bass farts. [Aug 2006, p.222]
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Compared to what went before, The Return Of... is a massive let down.
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Despite all the stupid records he's put out before, The Return of Dr. Octagon is the first one that plunges wholly into self-parody. He's now a fully realized clown, a prop, a joke and, most disappointingly, a sub-par rapper whose forced ideas and personality obstacles have devolved into flimsy, uninspired character sketches.
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FilterWe've heard this swaggering, fumbling funk before from Kool Keith's gazillion other alter-egos. [#21, p.98]
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The WireAs inspired as it is, The Return Of Dr Octagon is no sequel. [#269, p.44]
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The good stuff (those [first] three tracks, and maybe the indignant “Al Green”) provides Kool Keith an appropriate showcase and sounds like nothing else, but for much of this disc, the main man appears AWOL.
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"The Return of Dr. Octagon" suffers from the classic case of "too little, too late."
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Apart from its best tracks, it’s not close to the level of his finest work of the past.
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Keith is... for the first time living up to the standards of his most important precursor, the shape-shifting funkateer George Clinton. That is, even as he jokes and grooves his way through Octagon’s long-awaited return, he’s also serious as shit.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 8 out of 11
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Mixed: 1 out of 11
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Negative: 2 out of 11
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petertNov 27, 2006this is where hip hop should be going!
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youeatdogdododeepfriedOct 24, 2006
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christianvSep 12, 2006