I have decided the world officially works in strange ways. When I sat down to write this article I was in a miserable mood. Having just gotten caught in the rain on my way home from work I was soaked, cold and cursing out my lack of an umbrella. I popped in Transitions, the first full-length album from Dutch producer Arts the Beatdoctor to get my mind on to other things. As the rain continued to pour outside my window, I cracked a smile and couldn’t help but realize I had found the perfect rainy day nocturnal hip-hop.

Arts the Beatdoctor is a bit of an enigma, to say the least. Scouring the Internet for any factual information I could find about the Beatdoctor’s true identity gave me meager results. What I did find was a jokester who revels in his enigmatic alter-persona. His website proclaims that “there is a new kind of medical ‘expert’ called a Beatdoctor who goes about the hospital, indiscriminately prescribing unhealthy doses of cinematic, dark and melancholic hip-hop beats to unsuspecting patients.” He then continues to describe his dosage and how the medicine feels. Now not to go after the obvious pun here, but I’m pretty confident to say that this music is by no means unhealthy, and possibly just what the doctor ordered.

In 2003 Arts made his official debut producing a track for the Lord Cyrus “Diamonds R 4Ever” compilation alongside MF Grimm. He later went on to create an EP entitled Fragments that was released on Unexpected Records. When discussing his breakthrough into the music industry, Arts mentions Dutch rappers Pete Philly and Perquisite, two artists I’m proud to say were previously covered in Flight 808. Arts says, “I have to thank Pete Philly a lot. He picked up one of my demo CD’s when I was still in my ‘indescribable abstract music’ phase. I guess he heard the potential, because we talked a bit and decided to make some music together.” Arts has since contributed with Pete Philly on albums and on a joint tour in 2007. Transitions was released in 2007 on Amsterdam-based record label Unexpected Records.

As a producer’s producer, Arts has created an album that sounds like the work of a small jazz band, not a one man-show, and definitely not the work of a one-man producer. Featuring keyboard, drum and bass sounds as well as guest appearance from Dutch rappers Pete Philly, Sense and The Proov the songs seamlessly transition from jazz to ethereal piano to trip-hop beats. Each song has a laid-back, cinematic feel that creates a specific ambiance, that of smoky bars, late-night conversations, and the wee hours before dawn when the world is eerily quiet yet also amazingly alive.

One of the best tracks on the album is the title track, Transitions. Capturing a late night ride home on the subway, the track is laced over a repetitive piano line and a saxophone sample. With sounds of the subway screeching in the background Proov rhymes, “Clearing out the mind/ peering out the window/watching the world pass by me so quickly/reflects who I am but also contradicts me/Rattling ringtones from babbling bimbos/Toilet decay, too many delays/Fuck it, its all part of the norm/Finally, last stop, station, last platform.”

on you tube (no video, just audio)

Also check out The Anthem featuring Pete Philly. Definitely the most up-beat track on the album, the track bounces along over a sexy bass line with a chorus that chants “Arts the Beatdoctor, just give me a beat and I’ll spit something proper.” About halfway through the song, the instruments cut out, and an endearing a capella stylized with doo-wop harmonies harks back to barbershop tunes.

mp3: “The Anthem”

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There are also a ton of tracks floating around on the Internet that are not his album.

Check out the Hide Remix featuring Senna, a soul singer from the Netherlands. The song blends Res-like melodic lines over a chill trip hip-hop beat. On that note, if you haven’t, please check out the American hip-hop/soul singer Res. She was featured on Talib Kweli’s Reflection Eternal as well as on her solo album How I Do. (shameless plug for music I love that I think you should love to)

mp3: “Hide RMX”

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And then the Time Flies Remix, a reflective, mellow track featuring Pete Philly reminiscing about how fast time goes by and how important it is to make the most of each day. (cliché, I know, but you will grow to love it)

mp3: “Time Flies RMX”

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After getting my Arts the Beatdoctor fix, I have to say I now know exactly what kind of music to put on the next time it rains all day and honestly I hope it rains again tomorrow.