Tempest [Enhanced]

Insane Clown Posse | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 20, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced
• Label: Psychopathic Records
• ASIN: B000MTFFYA
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #135,206 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

You find yourself locked in place, bound by forces both familiar and frightening. A rumble, a tremble travels up your spine, a bass blast from supernatural speakers. Strobing lights blind your eyes, an unearthly spectacle beyond any made by man. Strap on your seatbelts, for you have entered... The Tempest.

You have reached a pinnacle, a peak in a journey that began years ago, when the Dark Carnival opened its gates and the Insane Clown Posse unleashed the Carnival of Carnage. That was the first of six mighty Joker's Card albums, a decade-spanning saga that climaxed with the platinum-selling Great Milenko and Amazing Jeckel Bothers, and wrapped with a vision of the afterlife, The Wraith: Shangri-La and Hell's Pit. The Joker's Cards had been dealt, but the Carnival carried on, as the caravan entered The Calm, 2005's record-breaking EP. That was just a prelude, an opening chapter to a new era for the Insane Clown Posse's Dark Carnival chronicle. The storm has loomed on the horizon, but now The Tempest is here...

Hold on tight, cuz that's not just your life flashing before your eyes. It's a story of life, death, sin and redemption, conducted in the clouds by the Insane Clown Posse, and you're about to drop in. get ready to ride the wind...

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars No, it's not like the old stuff... But it's not bad., March 21, 2007

By 

J. Miller "Twizta-J" (Cleveland, OH) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tempest (Audio CD)

I'm going to start this by quoting one of the reviewers below (dklotusjuggalo... whose original review apparently got deleted), who hit the nail right on the head with this comment... "Of course, not everything has to be wicked, but after "Shangri-La" AND "The Calm" AND "The People," I think the Juggalos are ready to go back to the Wicked Shxt, not J singing over a piano." Right on brother. And that's exactly what I was thinking before even purchasing this album. I've been a juggalo since 1997 and I still consider Riddlebox and Milenko my favorite ICP albums. They were not only the pinnacle of the wicked shxt, but also contained originality, great story telling, and production that was right on par with the carnival/horror theme.

Since then, there has been lots of material that I have still liked from ICP, but nothing that I would consider to be as good as the time frame from Ringmaster to Milenko. The Amazing Jeckle Brothers was a very good album... Bizaar/Bizzar was mediocre, but still had some redeeming qualities... Shangri-La was the first time that I felt ICP really let me down with an album... Hells Pit was an improvement, but still nowhere near the quality of the old stuff... and The Calm had a few good tracks, but it seemed like something that should be given away for free on the Internet rather than being justified as an actual release.

That being said, obviously my expectations weren't through the roof for The Tempest. I realize that ICP will never be like they were back in the day and I also don't want to be one of these juggalos that just complains that the music "doesn't sound like it used to," because I realize that artists are always going to branch into new territory and experiment with new sounds... plus nobody wants a carbon-copy of their old material anyway. So I went into The Tempest with an open mind and I'd have to say that this is favorite ICP record since Jeckle Brothers. Do some songs suck? Yes. Did they abandon the happy/friendly garbage (a-la "Homies")? No... but they also didn't make a whole album with tracks like that either. This is definitely an experimental album and about 2/3rds of the songs work. Here is my track-by-track breakdown:

1. The Sky is Falling - Just an intro, not worth rating.
2. Ride the Tempest - (A) - This reminds me of the old school. When I heard this it gave me that "yes, they're back" feeling and it has the perfect carnival beat to get you pumped up for the album. Can't wait for them to open with this song on the Tempest tour!
3. Alley Rat - (C) - OK, so this song starts off good and I actually like the verses and production. But as soon as the chorus hits, the song is just ruined. I personally wish they would never rap about being "scrubby"... lame. On a side note, that guitar/banjo noise in here sounds like something out of "Desperado" or another movie from the Rodriguez/Tarantino collection... definitely my favorite part of the song.
4. Haunted Bumps - (B) - The key word in the song is "bumps"... listen to this one in a good system and you won't be disappointed because the beat bangs! The chorus is kind of catchy too, even though it does sound a little lazy. Only J raps on this one and he basically does a good job... pretty good track overall.
5. Growing Again - (A-) - Listen to this one a few times before passing judgment because it definitely gets better after a couple spins. For me, this is an example of good "happy" ICP music. The beat is solid and the song just has a nice feel to it, even if the subject matter is a little cheesy. The chorus will grow on you like herpes.
6. Hum Drum Boogie - (D-) - This is the first track that falls completely flat. As the ninja below stated, Violent J should NOT sing... if he does, it should be in moderation on a darker song. Everything about this one just sucks.
7. I Do This - (D+) - When I heard this as the first single, I got very worried. It's "Homies" all over again with an equally "non-heterosexual" chorus. Songs like this are not why I listen to ICP. If Shangri-La is your favorite ICP album, you will probably love it though.
8. What About Now - (A+) - I love this song, straight up. The message is about how music used to mean something, but nowadays it just sucks. Great raps, great beat, great chorus. Not really classic ICP, but a great new sound.
9. Watch My Ride - (A+) - Another great tune. The first time I listened to this I thought to myself, "Who actually asks somebody to watch their ride?". But then I just suspended reality for a few minutes and enjoyed this song for what it was. Great beat, classic Psy chorus, and funny raps. Makes me think about Corey Haim in "License to Drive" for some odd reason.
10. News at 6 O'Clock - (A) - I like this one a lot too and the subject matter is perfect for J and Shaggy to work with. Extremely catchy chorus and it does have an old school feel to it. Shaggy outshines J on this song.
11. The Tower - (C+) - Many people seem to like to verses more than the chorus here, but for me it is the other way around. The chorus actually has a wicked feeling to it, where as the raps sound rushed and don't have a polished sound. Just my opinion, but either way it's not one of the album's best.
12. The Party - (A-) - I love the scratching by DJ Clay and Shaggy and the production on this track is fantastic. It seems like Shaggy's solo tracks w/o J are always awesome.
13. Bxtch I Lied - (B) - This is a standard funny ICP song. Overall I like it... pretty creative chorus too.
14. Play My Song - (A-) - Here is another great track that grows on you after a few listens. The verses in this song are the closest thing to the old school wicked shxt on the whole album... but the chorus is far from it. If the chorus was a little bit better, this had potential to be the best song on the album.
15. Mexico City - (C+) - Where do I start? If you're looking for something different, look no further. I don't even really know what to say about this one because this just doesn't seem like a sound or topic that ICP would ever touch. Rather than tell you what I don't like, I'll just say that it is original and keep it at that.
16. If I Was a Serial Killer - (C-) - This is worst "juggalo anthem" song that ICP has ever made. Once again, J should not sing... especially like this. If you manage to make it through the first three minutes or so, the song does pick up some steam. Remember when ICP ended albums with classic songs like "Pass Me By" and "I'm Comin' Home"? You won't find anything like that here. A disappointing ending to an album that should have gone out with a bang. And I can't imagine they would even attempt to perform this song live... we'll see!

In conclusion, if you're a juggalo you are going to buy this anyway, so who cares what I think. This is just one opinion from a long-time juggalo. No matter what ICP puts out on CD, I'll always love them for their older material and concerts anyway... not to mention the creation of the wicked underground! Can't wait for the Tempest tour with Twiztid!!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still The Best!, March 26, 2007

By 

Nicole J. Neal "nikki_the_magick_ninjette" (Brookfield, WI) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tempest (Audio CD)

I know ICP has been gettin dissed a bit for this one, but I love it. I love music, all kinds of music, but the psychopathic family tops it all. Some people are saying a few of the tracks are too slow, but I dont think so. Sometimes it just makes them funnier. ICP doing a rock ballad (If I Was A Serial Killer)? Hilarious. I always liked that they could do all types of music and do it well.

I like News At 6'Oclock because its true, Alley Rat cause the bumps are great and its how I feel, Hum Drum Boogie cause I'm a perv, and What About Now? because the beat is just wonderful. I will agree it in not their wickedest, but I've been down with the clowns since Ringmaster dropped, and there has never been a CD I didn't love.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars not wicked, March 19, 2007

By 

J. Irps "krazejjklown" (sparta) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tempest (Audio CD)

the only reason i gave this cd four stars instead of five is because they keep claiming they are going to have the next wickedest album out only to turn out being happy and cheery.

now that i got that out of my system, i still liked this one a lot. it's not sub par by any means because i liked the majority of all the songs on it (which i can't say for the majority of rap out there at this point. get back to old school rap please) the reason i love listening to ICP stuff is because they tell stories in all their music. no one seems to do that at this point, so that is why i stay down with the clown and proud of it.

i just wish they would stop claiming to be extremely wicked when they only register as freddy kruger scary. so pick this album up, but discard the notion of it being wicked and you will enjoy it much more. oh yeah, and my favorite song off this album is one most juggalos are going to be like WTF, the song Growing Again. it's just hillarious and extreme fantasy and not wicked at all. go figure. the tower is probably the most realistic serial killing song they have done in quite a while.

oh yeah, and as a side note, go ahead and check out the Wraith remix albums. you get both disks in one nice little neat package (like bizzare/bizaare should have been) and most of the mixes ain't half bad. from the way it looked, no one seemed to know about it, so enjoy.