Review Summary: While ICP people suck, the music affiliated with them is actually alright.
Okay, let’s get this over with. Firstly, Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J are f*cking white-trash idiots. They were the douche bags in high school that smoked in the back of class; wore hoodies, visors and cargo shorts; and dyed their hair neon colors. Secondly, Juggalos are the most idiotic fans ever to walk the Earth. Not surprisingly, they were also the same kind of douche bags. Wasn’t so hard, was it? Rather fun. Now for the difficult part – admitting ICP is decent. At this point in the review, ICP fans will scroll down, ‘pos’ me, and post some groupie-esque comment in agreement, however noting the rating should be higher and that Juggalos are actually the greatest group ever. Hip-hop elitists will ‘neg’ me because it’s cool to hate Insane Clown Posse, and all who recognize them as even mildly likable. But, bear with me, please. I will write in a way to attempt to shatter beliefs about the band that prevent open-minded listening, or even listening at all. Because that’s basically the only way you could convince anybody to listen to an ICP album. Practical? No. Effective? Possibly.
#1: “ICP members are stupid idiots. They wear masks and have their own characters they play!”
Well, Kool Keith played a character (Dr. Octagon,) Tech N9ne wears masks, and MF Doom does both, and all are commended artists here on Sputnik. If you’re really going to not listen to Insane Clown Posse because they have a “concept” that’s pretty two-faced.
#2: “Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope are terrible rappers.”
That’s partly true, partly false. While I will agree their gruff voices are pretty annoying and they have basic flows, I wholeheartedly disagree with the fact they’re bad rappers. They do a great job in particular of delivering great imagery, as exhibited on the run-around-town adventures of a lonely boy and a dead body narrated on “I Found a Body” and the grotesque, serial murder tale of “To Catch a Predator”. They also do a very good job of timing and matching their rapping to the beats. They justify Juggalo Island’s beat’s mood very well with their uplifted, oddly happy flowing and feel, just as they do with their melodic, haunting voices to match the phantasmal, eerie beat of “Vera Lee”.
#3: “Insane Clown Posse has sh*tty, terrible rock beats.”
Hahaha…no. I’m not sure about their other releases, but
Bang! Pow! Boom! largely finds its only rock elements within the vocals. Other than a few tracks which are rock-tinged,
Bang! Pow! Boom! has some quite awesome cuts. The awesome merry-go-round sample of “Freaky Creep Show (Red Version)” helps assist in establishing the ‘carnival’ concept, and the beachball, sunny feel of “Juggalo Island” is a great break from the creepy instrumentals like those on “Vera Lee”. Overall,
Bang! Pow! Boom! has a large hip-hop theme, musically. Hell, even the energetic rock beat of
Zombie Slide is awesome.
#4: “ICP albums have the worst lyrics ever.”
Not even close. I mean, if you’re looking for awesome punchlines, anything metaphysical, and/or technically well-constructed, then you’ll be disappointed in their lyrics, yea. But, if you like a dark, entertaining show, then why
wouldn’t you like Insane Clown Posse’s lyrics? Songs about murdering pedophiles, hauntings, and dead bodies are commonplace. Plus, ICP does a fairly good job of cohesively narrating stories.
#5: “Insane Clown Posse isn’t even creative.”
I bet you didn’t even catch the ongoing skit that centered around the theme of gathering low lives for a “carnival” until the title track was the explosion of the cumulating acts. I know I only caught wisps of it, so there’s something to consider.
So, now it’s decision time to ‘neg’ or ‘pos’. Much like an ICP album, I don’t mind what you decide to do, so long as you saw it through, and you can justify it.
