"EFF.SEE.DEE.IYEE" by the Black Plague Doctors is a short but powerful project that fully embraces lo-fi flaws and artistic freedom. For the 20 minutes it lasts, we are taken to a rough sound space where the structure seems loose, the textures seem raw, and the energy seems immediate. The album is based on a simple process that uses drum machines, live instruments, and SP404 sampling on purpose. It lets you hear music the way it was meant to be heard. The project doesn't try to be perfect. It works best when it's not too polished, like the music of J Dilla and Flying Lotus. You can tell that instinct guides us through every moment instead of us overthinking it. This makes the album feel honest, which is hard to find in more polished works.
The first song, "Dr. Curt Conners," sets the mood for the rest of the album by being hazy and a little off-kilter. The textures are rough and not smooth, but that's how they should be. Instead of making things clearer, they make a soundscape that makes you want to know more. That energy goes into "Relativity," where they play with rhythm and space more, letting the beat breathe while soft melodic parts come and go. It sounds like an experiment, but it still has a groove. From there, "This is Cooking" gets more focused, and it's one of the most interesting parts of the project. It sounds like the song came together without any effort, which is confident. It looks like it's moving forward because of how it was made. The switch to "Old Burner Phones" keeps things interesting, but it also makes people think and feel nostalgic. This gives us a chance to enjoy the mood before it changes again.
The next song is called "Ibuprofen." It feels more broken up, which fits even better with the project's raw identity. The sound design is very simple, but that works in its favor because it makes each part stand out in a raw and exposed way. This song shows how much the two want to stay the same and trust the moment as it is. The last song in the series, "Make it Real," brings everything together in a way that feels more real and whole. It gives a hint of resolution while still keeping the project's "do it yourself" feel. At the end, "EFF.SEE.DEE.IYEE" makes it clear that this project is based on gut feelings, not careful planning. Sophie M The Black Plague Doctors doesn't smooth out the edges; instead, she leans into them, which makes the music sound real, immediate, and random.
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