The Tempest (album)

Infobox Album |
Name = The Tempest
Type = Album
Artist = Insane Clown Posse


Background =
Released = March 20, 2007
Recorded = 2006
Genre = Horrorcore, Midwest hip hop, rap rock
Length = 59:42
Producer = Mike E. Clark
Reviews = * Allmusic Rating|3.5|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:hpfqxzw5ld0e~T1 link]
*Arizona Daily Wildcat (negative) [http://media.wildcat.arizona.edu/media/storage/paper997/news/2007/03/22/Wildlife/Insane.Clown.Posse.The.Tempest-2786740.shtml link]
*PopMatters rating-10|6 [http://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/32460/insane-clown-posse-the-tempest/ link]
Label = Psychopathic Records
Last album = ""
(2006)
This album = "The Tempest"
(2007)
Next album = "Eye of the Storm"
(2007)

"The Tempest" is an album by the hip hop group Insane Clown Posse. It was preceded by "The Calm" and was followed later in 2007 by "The Eye of the Storm" EP. According to the opening track on "The Calm", the titular Tempest is an incredibly destructive storm that will lay waste to the world, however the second track on the album - Ride the Tempest - has confirmed that The Tempest is in fact a roller coaster.

Album information

ICP said that, since the Joker's Card Saga has ended, they want to take the group in a new direction. Therefore, they said, the album would be completely different from anything that they had done previously. Very little else was known about the album at that time except that it would be produced by ICP's former producer Mike E. Clark. Clark parted ways with the group in 2000, and his return proved tremendously exciting for the Juggalo Family.

The release date was originally listed simply as "2006". The first "official" release date, September 19, 2006, was revealed in the liner notes of Shaggy 2 Dope's solo album, "Fuck the Fuck Off". On August 31, 2006 Insane Clown Posse released news that "The Tempest" will be delayed "a couple of months." On ICP's most recent visit to "The Howard Stern Show", Violent J stated that an album would be coming out in February, which was presumed to be "The Tempest". Violent J later stated that he had miscalculated the release date, and ICP announced on their website that "The Tempest" would be released on March 20, 2007.

On February 23, 2007, ICP posted downloads for the first single off of the album ("I Do This") and the album's sampler on their website. The sampler included segments from "Haunted Bumps", "The Party", and "I Do This!".

Included with the album was an insert announcing their next album, "The Eye of the Storm". The album also came with a patch and a poster featuring a large image showing much of "The Tempest"'s track. On the backside of the poster is a track list featuring the lyrics to all 16 songs on the album.

The Tempest, along with , does not once mention the word Juggalo. From "Beverly Kills 50187" forward, every album released by the band has used the term.

Reception

"The Tempest" debuted at number 20 on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling about 33,000 copies in its first week. [Katie Hasty, [http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003563939 "Modest Mouse Steers Its 'Ship' To No. 1 Debut"] , Billboard.com, March 28, 2007.] As of June 2007, it has sold around 70,000 copies.

Track listing

#The Sky is Falling
#Ride the Tempest
#Alley Rat
#Haunted Bumps
#Growing Again
#Hum Drum Boogie
#I Do This!
#What About Now?
#Watch My Ride
#News at 6 O'Clock
#The Tower
#The Party (feat. DJ Clay)
#Bitch, I Lied
#Play My Song
#Mexico City
#If I Was A Serial Killer

Album Notes

* "Hum Drum Boogie" contains a skit at the end for ICP's energy drink, Spazmatic, which is available from their online store, Hatchet Gear.cite web |url=http://secure.hatchetgear.com/v3/shop.php?sw=spaz&ds=2067 |title=HatchetGear.com - Spazmatic |accessdate=2008-08-17 |publisher=Psychopathic Records]

* "The Tower" contains references to Charles Whitman.

* Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope appear on the cover riding the Tempest.

* Former TNA Wrestling Manager James Mitchell is the one talking at the beginning of "Ride The Tempest".

* The end of "Mexico City" contains The Tempest crashing, using people cheering from Roller Coaster Tycoon 2

*A video for the song "The Tower" was released on February 16, 2008 and can be seen on the Insane Clown Posse website.

Chart positions

References