Table of Contents
Crazy Clown Posse have been a musical institution for in excess of 30 many years, but the general public belief of the Detroit-based clown duo comprised of Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope has morphed around the decades. Initially seen as a cult rap team, it wasn’t lengthy just before they were pegged as “the most hated band in the planet,” leaders of a “gang” and ridiculed for not being aware of how magnets get the job done. But that’s markedly various from their present place, in which it appears that the wicked clowns are ultimately obtaining some regard for their hustle and creativity.
With the announcement that ICP’s following tour will be their past owing to Violent J’s well being issues, people today are rediscovering the band or probably listening to them for the first time to see what they missed. Even though ICP are generally a rap team with some horrorcore factors relevant to carnivals and psycho circuses, ICP had been really the bridge for a lot of rock and steel enthusiasts into hip hop, as they did sometimes walk the tightrope between rap and rock. I vividly don’t forget viewing the video clip for “Halls of Illusions” on the Canadian metal music video clip display Loud, which led me to The Great Milenko album and further than.
ICP followers are called Juggalos (and from time to time ninjas), but you really don’t require to label you that to enjoy their music, just like you don’t need to have to contact on your own a Maggot when listening to “People = Shit.” The documentary American Juggalo was a glimpse into that entire world, however I consider it could be taken even even further when is African Juggalo or Asian Juggalo coming out?
What is much more, Insane Clown Posse’s annual Accumulating of the Juggalos festival has performed host to some surprisising bands more than the decades this sort of as Cannibal Corpse, Fear Factory, Gwar, Psychostick and Eco-friendly Jelly, exhibiting that ICP’s connection with the metallic world is really substantially intact.
If you were on the fence about ICP and didn’t know wherever to commence or just want to go down memory lane, “Let’s acquire a stroll down the hallway. It’s a extensive way. It can take all day.”
Listed here are some of the duo’s most effective rock-centered tracks.
“Chicken Huntin’ (Slaughterhouse Mix)”
ICP’s 1st two albums, Carnival of Carnage and The Ringmaster, have been as shut to conventional rap as could be, albeit with the theme of dim carnivals and their tortuous rides. There was a grungy guitar backing track on “For the Maggots” from Ringmaster, but if not these albums were void of rock components. It was not until finally their third album, The Riddle Box, when a guitar ultimately arrived into the center mix. “Chicken Huntin’,” a song about murdering racist rednecks the clowns deem “chickens,” is a beefed-up remake of the Ringmaster track and is a person of the group’s a lot more iconic music, featuring lyrics inspired by Violent J’s individual encounters. The observe starts with a simple riff just before the clowns just take you down to the deep south: “What can you do with a drunken hillbilly? Lower his fuckin’ eyes out and feed him to his Aunt Milly,” spit J and 2 Dope. Blood, guts, fingers, toes fill this traditional horrorcore track get pleasure from with a 5-piece rooster nugget box.
“Piggy Pie”
The Fantastic Milenko was ICP’s 1st foray into the mainstream in 1997. The album was backed by Disney’s Hollywood Documents but was taken off shelves just right after its release (certainly the label brass listened to ICP prior to signing them?) and later introduced on Island Records. The album has some noteworthy visitor rock musicians which includes Alice Cooper on the intro observe, Slash on “Halls of Illusions,” and ICP’s model of “The 3 Tiny Pigs” with The Sex Pistols’ Steve Jones on guitar. Fantasies about killing racist rednecks come up a good deal in ICP’s music, and this is a person of the much more iconic examples, including a bigot cop as the next piggy and a greedy, wealthy piggy as the 3rd. The monitor provides to mind “Chicken Huntin’” and is from the very same wicked farm, nevertheless working with pork this round.
“Halls of Illusions”
During ICP’s The Terrific Milenko phase, their hair was in prime nu metal type: thick, long dreadlocks, which built the duo seem like clownish versions of Jonathan Davis when headbanging to the “rock” choruses in songs like “Halls of Illusions.” The aforementioned song with Slash on guitar, the track normally takes the listener down a carnival experience wherever they are designed to for starters look at illusions of an great lifetime, and then the life they truly produced for them selves and their families, which, as you can guess, is shit. Some selection lyrics here are “Back to fact, your son’s on crack. And your daughter’s acquired nut stains on her back.” While vulgar, it is a excellent morality tale which condemns domestic abuse and showcases ICP’s knack for storytelling at its most effective.
“How Several Times?”
1 of the darker tracks on The Wonderful Milenko, “How Many Moments?” in its edited movie version includes a Sabbath-like droning guitar. Violent J’s lyrics are akin to Michael Douglas’s character from Falling Down, dealing with the horrible and discouraging trivia of everyday lifestyle — website traffic jams, waiting in traces and likely into McDonald’s and not finding a cheeseburger — whilst figuring out just one can make gunpowder from limestone, on the verge of snapping. The video for the tune features typical wrestlers The Honky Tonk Male and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine lounging in a residing place with the clowns.
“Assassins”
When The Awesome Jeckel Brothers was produced in 1999, ICP uncovered themselves connected with the current nu steel crop of bands that were being out at the minute. ICP had been under no circumstances labeled nu metallic, but blending rap and rock undoubtedly created them acquaintances to the genre. The release of the album observed them play Woodstock ’99 enjoying reverse Korn. Later, they booked a tour with Coal Chamber only for the Chamber boys to depart the trek right after only two exhibits (the causes for which have been disputed on both equally sides). On “Assassins,” their Woodstock ’99 set opener, ICP choose the Geto Boys vintage (whom they also brought again with each other for The Mighty Loss of life Pop) and include chunky guitar riffs, allowing the festival attendees know that these clowns were being not to be fucked with.
“Fuck the World”
The Amazing Jeckel Brothers featured a handful of guitar-infused tracks which properly morphed ICP into a a lot more intense unit. “Fuck the World” could be thought of a precursor to Limp Bizkit’s “Hot Dog,” with Violent J proclaiming “In this song I say fuck 93 situations.” Mike E. Clark’s sinister manufacturing on this keep track of seems like it is a B-aspect from an ‘80s New York gang movie like The Warriors. Fueled by the duo’s conflict with Disney from their previous album, ICP laid their spire down below, calling out Celine Dion, Ted Nugent together with Spin and Rolling Stone. The pre-chorus, “If I only could I’d set the globe on hearth,” sees ICP at their peak of nihilism.
“I Want My Shit”
The Great Milenko attempted to tell listeners just what a Juggalo was, and on their following album, ICP expanded on that and attempted to advise us of what they want. Evidently which is a rusty axe, to know how to follow voodoo, to have a “fat bitch” named Bridget as a companion in life and to have a small sip of the soda known in discounted marts everywhere as Faygo. Truthfully, ICP could have named nearly anything they wished in the song and it would have worked the format rocks and is best for a shout-alongside, as 1000’s did at Woodstock ’99.
“Take It”
When ICP were being active WCW wrestlers, they teamed with steel-based mostly characters Raven and Vampiro, and later the Japanese legend The Fantastic Muta. For their tenure, like in the WWF prior to, they created their individual theme tune, the guitar-driven “Take It,” at first utilized in their team The Deadpool. The song is probably what you’d imagine a rap/rock music by ICP would ordinarily sound like if you have by no means listened to them prior to. Just after the release of The Wraith and the revelation that “the carnival is God,” the lyrics to “Take It” could unquestionably be referring to a better ability as in the lyric “everything is up to him.” Violent J has mentioned that it alludes to the satan, however. Interestingly, wrestlers other than ICP used the track for their entrance songs following the clowns still left WCW.
“Cartoon Nightmares”
From Neglected Freshness Volume 3, “Cartoon Nightmares” sounds like what you’d expect ICP to be if they fronted an precise band, with real drums in area of programmed beats and total guitar all through the refrain. The music is quite nonsensical, which I suppose is the stage seeing as the title refers to animated journeys by the subconscious. The keep track of does rock and attributes at least one particular laugh-out-loud line: “If you had been Andre the Big, that shit would be slick. You could finger fuck a girl and she’d assume it is your dick.”
“The Filth Ball”
From the Psychopathics from Outer Space album, “The Grime Ball” sees ICP, together with special friends Twiztid, rapping the track by the eyes of alien people (the dirt ball in concern is Earth). I just cannot help but think of Gwar or Ziltoid the Omniscient when hearing this track, even though ICP basically carry believed-provoking commentary on Earth’s challenges these types of as racism by an alien perspective. The refrain below is the metallic portion of the track, with an account of people shouting to the alien rappers, “This is our world, so get the fuck out!” accompanied by weighty guitars. The chorus would not truly feel out of location on heavier albums, which is likely why the keep track of was also extra to the Weighty Metal F.A.K.K. 2 soundtrack along with bands like Pantera, Program of a Down and Monster Magnet.
“Tilt-A-Whirl”
When you have the dim carnival as an inspirational source, no question you’d test to make a track out of every single experience located at a person. “House of Mirrors” and “Halls of Illusions” came just before and were being mostly morality tales of individuals not living a righteous life finding mutilated on the ride. “Tilt-A-Whirl” is fairly simple as far as tracks go, currently being nearer to the rock side of rap rock. Vocally, the wicked clowns act like all those trip MC’s beckoning chickens who have beat their young children to get on. As the verses go on, additional sinners are inspired to hop on, which is typical in ICP “ride tunes.” No subject who it may be, as the clowns say in the rocking chorus, “They all die.”
“Rainbows & Stuff”
ICP do their have edition of Julie Andrews’ “My Beloved Things” with this Bizaar track. “I like ice cream, cherry pie and lemonade with summer season breeze. I like rainbows, leafy trails and dog canines with bumblebees” croons Violent J, who maybe must be named Mild J below, in advance of getting straight to the despise with the chorus: “Something tells me that I loathe you. A thing tells me I must eliminate you.” The music matches the normal gentle verse/really hard refrain rock radio structure, and if this had been any other group, it could have been a hit.
“Let’s Go All the Way”
Prior to Program of a Down set out Mesmerize and Hypnotize, the wicked clowns put out their have double-album deal with Bizzar and Bizaar, released on the similar working day in 2000. Equally albums aspect a range of rock-primarily based tracks such as the gloriously dumb “Rainbows and Stuff” and “Tilt-A-Whirl.” “Let’s Go All the Way,” a Sly Fox address, is surely a stand-out the song exemplifies the Juggalo ideology best with wealthy kids, weak little ones, scrubbies and the like all coming collectively to be portion of the household. The movie sees ICP on parade in a suburban neighborhood, with some citizens gawking in disgust and other people becoming a member of the fun. ICP’s chilly war with MTV came to a head on December 8, 2000, when the band asked supporters to ask for the online video on their TRL exhibit. Virtually 400 ICP supporters showed up outside the studio and have been subsequently taken off from the premises. Calls to engage in the video were being overlooked by MTV.
“Murder Rap”
The Wraith: Shangri-la was a monumental album in ICP’s discography, the closing in the band’s sequence of first joker’s playing cards. Juggalos waited with bated breath to discover out the mystery message of the Dim Carnival, which would lastly be unveiled to blended reactions on observe 17, “Thy Unveiling.” The album, while not going as really hard as the prior Jeckel Brothers, does have its share of bangers like “Hell’s Forecast” and this deal with of Previously mentioned the Law’s “Murder Rap,” a prime case in point of the wicked clowns of previous delivering a track that is unabashedly road. The term “death rap” would afterwards be applied by rappers like Necro (who also has ties to steel with his album The Pre-Repair for Dying), but when the wicked clowns make your mind up to get their hatchets out, couple of hack and slash superior.
“Leck Mich Im Arsch”
Insane Clown Posse, Jack White and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. When was the very last time a holy trinity of musical genii came together like this? The first canon by Mozart was published in 1782, and as it refers to rim employment, was believed to be a party piece for his buddies. Fellow Detroit indigenous White contacted ICP to assist modernize the monitor, with the wicked clowns rapping about his guitar work , “He wrote this, never sugar-coat this: ‘To get your ass licked off is the dopest. Call it a fetish, phone him a freak. Call him in have to have of a tongue on his butt cheek.’” Truly a timeless message 230 decades in the producing.