Review Summary: Despite being someone who trolls Juggalos on a regular basis, I couldn't help but fall in love with this album.
Violent J and
Shaggy 2 Dope... an extreme lack of talent in the complexity department; if this were to be a 1/1.5 review, I'd stress this, because it cannot be stressed enough. But if possible, don't take them so seriously, and they can be quite a fun band, as long as you don't end up as part of the faux-cult that follows them around like sheep.
This being said, this album was the first I ever listened to, because I decided I need a basis of their music before I can judge the band itself (not that it would ever change my view of their "army"). Sadly, I ended up hooked on the album, because, regardless of what people say about their music, The Great Milenko was a genuinely tolerable, dare I say GOOD, album.
Yes, this is another song-by-song review, because to judge this album as a whole would not express the heavily varying content of the music itself.
Track 1: Intro. (NA/5)
It's a typical hillbilly scene Insane Clown Posse likes to illustrate. "Why?" is beyond me. But what surprised me was Alice Cooper's part in it; although it was a creepy-esque narrative and nothing more, it was a nice surprise.
Track 2: The Great Milenko (1/5)
Was this really necessary? It's a very repetitive, boring tune with unmoving lyrics that acts as a second intro. Look guys, we needed one or the other, not both. I prefer the original.
Track 3: Hokus Pokus (5/5)
Most likely the most famous song by the group, next to Miracles, Hokus Pokus is proof that the group actually as a scrap of talent that they can utilize, and utilize well. With Mike E. Clark's circus-style organ and a mellow-horror beat to work with, the duo manages to pull off a song that is considered good by regular standards, not just by ICP standards. While Violent J is easily the superior rapper, Shaggy manages to pull out a couple rhymes with favorable flow, both of them with lyrics not really about much of anything. About the Dark Carnival, mainly, and briefly mentioning Milenko.
Track 4: Piggy Pie (2/5)
This tends to be a "cult classic" among Juggalos, and is one of the main reasons I dislike the group. This song is about cop killing. What saves the song from poor rhymes, a boring story (hell, if you want a song they do WELL about nothing but murder, Imma Kill U and Murder Go Round are decent), and a lackluster beat is Sex Pistol's guitarist Steve Jones. Yet another cameo, but one done wrong.
Track 5: How Many Times? (2.5/5)
Eh, an improvement from Piggy Pie, but definitely not what any rap aficionado, or anyone who has ever listened to rap, would want to listen to. Mediocre lyrics, but what I believe was done intentionally, so that people can relate the song to their own daily lives. Progressively becoming more and more extreme, from being blocked in traffic to a court sentence, it's difficult not to find solace in knowing that no matter who you are, others have felt the same thing. Everything else aside, the song itself is mediocre.
Track 6: Southwest Voodoo (3/5)
"Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and caldron bubble.
Fillet of a fenny snake,
In the caldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt, and toe of frog,
Wool of bat, and tongue of dog."
Put this in the year 1990 or so, add ICP's own bit of Detroit "flavor," and you have Southwest Voodoo. The beat is decent, the flow reminiscent of Snoop Dogg's mellow rhyme, and, while nowhere near the top of the album, and while it does not leave a lasting impression, I'd say give it a try.
Track 7: Halls of Illusions (3/5)
Slash. Yes, even Slash decided to lend a hand in the album, and while his talent is wasted, the song is probably the best done "attack song" the duo does. By attack song, of course, I mean any song meant to target a group of people (bigots, rednecks, etc., which makes me believe ICP may be two of the most successful IRL trolls in the world). While Shaggy's signature "screaming" is present most the song, which I've grown to despise, since it tends to ruin whatever he was trying to say (see also: Play With Me, Boogie Woogie Woo, Everybody Rize, Piggy Pie, etc.), the imagery isn't half bad, and I can see what the two were trying to illustrate in their song. With Slash powering through simple powerchords throughout the song, and the lyrics not horrible, this is a song that, while annoying after multiple go-throughs, is not half-bad. Mind you, it's not half-good, either.
Track 8: Under the Moon (4.5/5)
This is the only song I could relate to, personally. No, I didn't go to jail, and no, I didn't kill someone, but the feeling of "I helped you and you betrayed me" is a feeling I know most of us have felt at some point in our lives. I guess you could call this the "ballad" song of the album, and one of few they've taken seriously (compare to Love Song or Another Love Song, which both were meant to be outrageous and funny, even if they did fail on the second part of that). I feel that the two of them probably have felt this pain strongly enough to write the song, as I feel as if they actually use *gasp* EMOTION in their words; in fact, I'd say it almost rivals "Daddy" by
Korn in terms of true feelings. True, but not quite. And yes, I give this song quite a lot of credit, and I have exaggerated the major points of the song, but truthfully, I love this song.
Track 9: What is a Juggalo? (2.5/5)
There isn't much to say here. The introduction is several clips from different ICP songs (most, if not all, I believe are from The Ringmaster, and perhaps one or two from Carnival of Carnage). After that, the song goes downhill, as the attempt at humor is dry and unwitty, the beat mediocre and boring. While the brief back-and-forth between J and Shaggy had me chuckle:
But he ain't like
Anybody that you've ever met before
He'll eat Monopoly and *** out Connect Four
What is a jug--What the ***?
Connect...?Man that *** is whack
Don't worry about my ***
Just rap mother***er
But other than the interruption (which they attempted to redo in I Want My Sh*t on The Amazing Jeckel Brothers), the song is repetitive and boring. Meh.
Track 10: House of Horrors (2.8)
I didn't want to put this on the same tier as Halls of Illusions, but it's better than What is a Juggalo?. Come to think of it, it's basically What is a Juggalo with slightly more enjoyable humor, but a much more interesting beat to go with it. It's about a couple who go into the House of Horrors, get tortured, and then they let the woman out as they kill the man (implied). But since I *think* this song was not meant to be taken seriously, I gave it some slack. However, the reply value is moderately high, so it won't be exhausted very quickly.
Track 11: Boogie Woogie Woo (2.2/5)
This is basically the House of Horrors to Piggy Pie. More enjoyable beat, but replace cops with children, and you've got it. More screaming from Shaggy. Joy joy.
Track 12: The Neden Game (1/5)
This tends to be the song everyone finds funny. At lest, everyone without a sense of humor (see: Juggalos). It's basically a dating game where Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope attempt to out-perv each other to impress a girl. The jokes aren't funny, the disses are poor (as in, Eminem choking in 8 Mile probably accomplished more),and the beat is repetitive and annoying. This is the song that you want to reference if you want to say the group has no talent, because honestly, this song proves just that, and should be avoided at all costs.
Track 13: Hellalujah (4.5/5)
This is another one of their attack songs, mainly against priests (notably those who appear on television) and how they abuse their power for money:
Above the rocks, above the earth,
Tell me what your soul is worth.
How much money do you make?
How much will you let me take?
I will give you tranquility,
Just send you wealth and checks to me.
I always think this song should have been sped up, since it lasts five minutes, and the song would have sounded much better if they put some force behind their words. The beat, while repetitive (I blame it on the length of the song) sets the right mood and, on its own, could accomplish the same effect in any anti-[fill in the blank] song. What separates this from Halls of Illusions, however, is the focus on the problem and not the "solution" (being murder).
Track 14: Down with the Clown (2/5)
This is What is a Juggalo?. Same boring beat, same dry humor, same mediocre flow. However, I would like to point out a specific line in the song:
I got problems, I'm haunted by a carnival,
I could run and tell a doctor, but what for?
I just put it on tape wit' a phat beat,
And make a quick buck, I'm like, ***!
Told you, best IRL trolls ever. But, in general, not a good song.
Track 15: Just Like That (2.2/5)
Clocking in at 1:32, this filler track is just that: a filler. Even with a decent flow, the song's lyrical content and beat are severely lacking. I always thought it sounded flat, but that's just me.
The song is about trying to get money to have sex with a prostitute/slut. And then J dies for reasons never stated other than some random shooting.
Track 16: Pass Me By (5/5)
This is Insane Clown Posse's best song ever. I can say that with complete conviction. Although the song is about dying and going to the Dark Carnival, the imagery is clear, the flow and lyrics are actually pretty solid, and the mock-horror circus backing was replaced with an enjoyable melody that doesn't become repetitive or annoying. The song lasts a bit too long (the last verse could have been nixed), but, like Hokus Pokus, this is further proof that ICP might just have some talent to spare, and can even be taken seriously every once in a while. Even Shaggy adopts a more smooth style for the first verse, sounding more like early
Chamillionare than a schizophrenic cocaine addict.
Final Notes:
Insane Clown Posse has yet to have an album of this caliber; the closest, however, is The Amazing Jeckel Brothers.
Unlike other albums that focus on murder in almost every song, this is probably the most varied of all the albums they've produced, rivaled only by Bizaar.
Don't take ICP for granted; while their most popular songs are usually the worst, digging deeper might just find a decent song or two.
Juggalos are still scum, sorry to say.
Oh,
I didn't read through this after I wrote it. Sue me.
