Ringmaster (album)

Ringmaster is the second studio album by American hip hop duo Insane Clown Posse, and their second Joker Card in the first Deck of the Dark Carnival mythology. It was originally released on March 8, 1994, via Psychopathic Records and was reissued in 1998 through Island Records. Recording sessions took place at 313 Studio in Detroit. Production was handled by Mike E. Clark and ICP themselves. It features guest appearances from Capitol E and Jumpsteady. The album's lyrics describe the leader of the Carnival, who serves as one of the judges of one's soul in the afterlife, as being created from the listener's own evils. The album's instrumentals feature several samples from French psychedelic rock band Gong.

The album was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on June 7, 2004, for selling 500,000 units in the United States.

Its promotional single, "Chicken Huntin'" was remixed and featured on the duo's third studio album, Riddle Box, which was released the following year. Another remix of the song appeared on the soundtrack album to Reginald Hudlin's 1996 film The Great White Hype.

An accompanying "sideshow" EP The Terror Wheel was released on August 5, 1994. The EP contains six studio tracks. "The Dead Body Man" which was subsequently re-released in 1995 on Insane Clown Posse's third studio album Riddle Box, in a slightly higher key. "The Dead Body Man" received significant local radio play in Detroit following the release of The Terror Wheel. "The Smog" was also intended to be released on Riddle Box. The final track on the album contained a number you could call to find out the name of the next Joker's Card, Riddle Box.

Conception

Background

Following a dream by group member Violent J in which "spirits in a traveling carnival appeared to him", Insane Clown Posse created the mythology of the Dark Carnival. The Carnival, a metaphoric limbo in which the lives of the dead await to be judged, was planned to be elaborated through a series of stories called Joker's Cards, each of which offers a specific lesson designed to change the "evil ways" of listeners before "the end consumes us all." The group also released their first EP, Beverly Kills 50187, in 1993. When they felt the building anticipation for the second Joker's Card, the duo began work on Ringmaster. The Dark Carnival is a concept of the afterlife in which souls are sent to a form of limbo while waiting to be sent to heaven or hell based on their individual actions. These concepts are related by Insane Clown Posse in a series of albums called the six Joker's Cards. Each of the six Joker's Cards relate to a specific character—an entity of the Dark Carnival—that tries to "save the human soul" by showing the wicked inside of one's self.

Ringmaster is the overseer of the Carnival of Carnage. He is created through one's own sins, and is one of several who will judge whether a soul is worthy to enter heaven or doomed to eternal hell.

Music

Samples

"Chicken Huntin'" samples "May You Never Be Alone" by Hank Williams and "Pungee" by The Meters
"Southwest Song" samples "Right on for the Darkness" by Curtis Mayfield
"Get Off Me, Dog!" samples "Trigga Happy" by Spice 1 and "C & H Sugar" by Hampton Hawes
"Who Asked You" samples "Oily Way" and "Flute Salad" by Gong and "Nobody's Fault" by Aerosmith
"The Dead One" samples "Selene", "Flute Salad", and "Castles in the Clouds" by Gong
"My Fun House" samples "Bullet in the Head" by Rage Against the Machine and "Shelter" by Circuit
"For The Maggots" samples "Bambooji" and "You Can't Kill Me" by Gong
"The Loons" samples "The Stalker" by Insane Clown Posse and "Poo Too" by Oneness of Juju
"Ringmaster's Word" samples "The Pot Head Pixies" by Gong

Lyricism

When writing lyrics for the album, the group realized that they were defining the direction for future Joker's Cards and what their group could become.

Critical reception

In his 2004 edition of The Great Rock Discography series, music historian Martin C. Strong gave the album four out of ten stars.

Legacy

Ringmaster's popularity enabled Insane Clown Posse to sell out larger nightclubs across their hometown of Detroit, Michigan, such as St. Andrews Hall and the State Theatre. During a concert in 1993, Bruce threw an open bottle of Faygo at a row of concertgoers who were giving them the finger. After receiving a positive response, J and 2 Dope since continued to spray Faygo onto audiences. The idea was later scrapped due to their label at the time, Hollywood Records, rejecting the track for its violent lyrics, as they would with several of the group's other songs. The re-recording was released on Insane Clown Posse's compilation album Forgotten Freshness Volumes 1 & 2, along with the 20th Anniversary reissue.

Track listing

Personnel

Joseph "Violent J" Bruce – vocals (tracks: 2–5, 7–15), producer, mixing (tracks: 3, 6–13, 15), engineering (tracks: 7, 9, 11–16)
Joseph "Shaggy 2 Dope" Utsler – vocals (tracks: 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 14, 15), scratches (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 11–14), producer, mixing (tracks: 3, 6–13, 15), engineering (tracks: 7, 9, 11–16)
Robert "Jumpsteady" Bruce – vocals (track 9)
Erik "Capitol E" Perry – vocals & producer (track 15)
Mike E. Clark – producer & engineering (tracks: 1–6, 8–15)
Laura Grabb – programming & engineering (track 7)
Lori Molnar – photography