Of all the songs from Sims' second album that might get played on the Current and other public radio stations, "One Dimensional Man" either has the best or the worst chance of becoming a hit.
On the plus side, it's smart, ideological and musically scorching. On the other hand, it might raise a little ire with lyrics such as these: "Holier-than-thou type thing/But you did your part/You gave your hundred bucks to NPR/You joined the co-op now/Bought the hybrid car/Switched to Peace Coffee/Went to three rallies/...Good deeds tallied/Consumer movement seeking absolution."
Talking between rehearsals for his release party Saturday at the Fine Line, Doomtree's cheekily self-described "angry white male rapper" was quick to deny he has joined Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin in their efforts to ridicule liberal elitists everywhere.
"Like a lot of my songs, it's as much about me as it is anyone else," said the Hopkins native, Andrew Sims, 28. "It's about the 'easy outs' we find as liberals, the idea that the best way we can voice our dissent is through our purchases. I'm saying, 'It's time to replace your smugness with action.'"
The latest in Doomtree's deluge of quarterly full-length releases, "Bad Time Zoo" is less overtly political and more musically playful than Sims' 2005 debut, "Lights Out Paris," However, it still boasts some pretty heady themes. Foremost among them is the idea -- introduced in the opening track "Future Shock" -- that the Internet and all our handheld gadgetry have desensitized us to what's really going on in our world, or even with the person standing next to us. Once again sounding pot-kettle-black, these songs come from someone who admits to "waking up and automatically touching some kind of a screen every day."
"The world is so interconnected now, and yet it's getting harder and harder for people to connect through real human emotions," he said.
Sims was a few years younger than his Doomtree mates when they started making music together after high school, so he was intimidated at first. P.O.S. pushed him the most, enough for "Lights Out Paris" to become one of the first Doomtree full-lengths. The six-year wait for the follow-up was largely a matter of waiting his turn, but he said being in the crew is worth its advantages.
"We make each other better in every way," he said. With every new track, he said, "I want it to be a song that will impress the rest of Doomtree above everyone else. If they don't feel it, then I know it's probably not working."
