If you’re not familiar with Psychopathic Records, they are a record label that has been around since 1992 that has been putting out music very much unlike what the mainstream has been offering.  Of course, with 18 years of releases, they have a lot of history.  It’s not an easy task to compile a top 9 list of Psychopathic Albums as the music caters to such a diverse group of tastes, but these are, in my opinion, the standout releases.

#9 ABK: Dirty History

When it was announced that Anybody Killa had been signed to Psychopathic Records and was going to do his own style of Native American Rap, many people were skeptical.  And while his first LP, “Hatchet Warrior” is beloved by many people, the fact of the matter was that the album was quite rushed and didn’t do enough to showcase the spiritual side of ABK.

With Dirty History, ABK set out to make an overall better album that Hatchet Warrior, and in my opinion, he did just that.  With tracks such as “Hey Y’all”, “Down Here” and “Trees and Woods”, the Native American influence is obvious.  He also stays true to his street roots with tracks such as “Party at the Liquor Store”, “Gimme Ah Beat”, and “Retaliate”.  This is another album that is lacking any filler tracks and was known to create a lot of new fans back in the day.

#8 Insane Clown Posse: Tunnel of Love

This EP was released as a love album, done Psychopathic style.  Naturally, there’s nothing at all mushy about it.  Interestingly, history has placed Tunnel of Love as one of the more significant releases in the juggalo community.  With the song “Ninja” giving rise to the affectionate nickname of juggalos, and the song “Stomp” beginning the practice of “Whoop Whoop” being a juggalo catchphrase, Tunnel of Love pioneered much of the juggalo culture.  Not to mention that the track “Prom Queen” is arguably the most dark and demented track that ICP has ever recorded.

#7 Twiztid: The Green Book

This album is, simply put, just a very solid effort from Twiztid.  When they entered the studio, their aim was to put together an album with as many A+ songs as they could, and include the most notable guest stars that they could.  The Green Book was the beginning of Twiztid becoming more of a “legitimate’ rap group, and allowed them to break free of the stereotype that they were little more than clones of ICP.

#6 Boondox: The Harvest

All eyes were on this album back in 2006.  Reason was that Psychopathic is notoriously shy about hiring new acts unless they are already established.  And when it was announced that they had signed a new artist who did not have any previously released material, expectations were high, due to the fact that hundreds, if not thousands of people had tried in the past to get signed with no luck.  Word has it that the man who would become Boondox got the attention of Psychopathic Records by handing them a bootleg tape outside of a concert.

What was different about Boondox’s album was that it was horror rap in a new context, a rural setting.  There are few things as creepy as finding yourself in the middle of nowhere without any cops in miles!  The Harvest also successfully combines down and dirty country music with horror rap and actually making it work.  This album happens to be one of my very favorite albums period, and in my opinion is one of the most underrated albums of all time of any genre.

#5 Twiztid: Mostasteless

Psychopathic Records had tried in the past to branch out beyond ICP, but had little luck doing so.  In 1998, they finally hit it big with Twiztid.  Mostasteless was such a killer album, that it single handedly turned Psychopathic into a “real” record label, instead of a vehicle for ICP.  My favorite part of the album is the very beginning, when Jamie Madrox introduces himself to the world in a very memorable way.  With the rap world still recovering from the murders of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls, due to the West Side vs. East Side rivalry, Madrox introduces himself on the album by making the very first lyrics on Mostasteless “I represent the East Side, No peace”.  True antagonism which set the tone for the rest of their career.

#4 Insane Clown Posse: Bang Pow Boom

This was the album that everyone was expecting to hate.  After a disappointing release in 2007 in The Tempest, and an even more disappointing release in 2005 in The Calm, ICP had been all but written off by everyone except the hardcore fans.  ICP knew that in order to win people back over, they would have to knock one out of the park and deliver another classic like they had been known to do.  And in 2009, they did not disappoint.

Bang Pow Boom was hyped as the return of the Dark Carnival, ICP’s form of mythology and music style, but nobody knew exactly what that meant.  When Bang Pow Boom hit the stores, it became obvious that with the Dark Carnival back, it meant that the old ICP was back in full force.  It was like ICP was on vacation for 10 years, and were back in true form.  While I wouldn’t call this release ICP’s best, I would definitely call it their most solid and accessible album.

#3 Dark Lotus: The Opaque Brotherhood

Dark Lotus has been around in some form or another since 2000, but in my opinion, 2008 was when the group FINALY came together.  Originally conceived as a supergroup consisting of ICP and Twiztid, Dark Lotus went through many lineup changes over the years.  Eventually, Blaze was added as the fifth member, and Marz was added as the sixth member in time for their first release.  After the departure of Marz, ABK was added as the sixth member until his departure after their second release.

It would seem that the band was cursed and this definitely affected their music in a negative way.  As much as I enjoyed their second release, “Black Rain”, it definitely sounds like it was rushed.  However, Dark Lotus decided to create Opaque Brotherhood with only 5 members and finally created the masterpiece that they were capable of doing.

Opaque Brotherhood is one of those rare albums that comes out where every single track is top notch and in my opinion is one of the creepiest albums that Psychopathic has put out.  Essentially, the album is a series of topics, some of them scary, and each member’s take on the subject.  High points include “Backwords” where each verse tells a story backwards with a concept ripe with potential plot twists, “Follow The Leader” where the group addresses the many copycat artists out there who are strongly influenced by them, and “Withered” which will bring goosebumps to all but the most hardened people.

#2 Insane Clown Posse: Hell’s Pit

ICP’s sixth jokers card, which also included The Wraith: Shangri-La, was what their entire musical career was building up to.  True be told, Shangri-La is just as good as Hell’s Pit, but it is more of an album for established juggalos, while Hell’s Pit is the more accessible one of the two.  The entirety of the album is about Hell and human misery.

What was revolutionary about this album was that ICP managed to make an album about Hell, and the road to Hell, without glamorizing it, and without mentioning Satan more than once.  (Essentially, not giving the devil his due!)

The standout point, to me, was their decision to end the album on a song about manic depression, aka bipolar disorder.  Never before have I heard the anguish and misery of this disease so eloquently put.  There’s a lot to relate to for many people on this album, which is a wake up call to make desperate changes in your life.

Even if you don’t believe in a place called Hell, that doesn’t make it any less real, as ICP points out by showcasing several tracks that deal with the misery that people have created in their own lives.

#1 Insane Clown Posse: Riddlebox

This is where the stars were in alignment and everything seemed to just fall into place for Psychopathic Records.  Riddlebox has stood the test of time, and after fourteen years is still arguably the strongest release from ICP or any other artist on the label.  This is the album where they finally had found their signature carnival sound and mythology and was also their first national release.

Riddlebox features classics such as the Chicken Huntin’ remix that everyone is familiar with, and is probably ICP’s most famous hit.  It also features juggalo classics such as “12″, “The Show Must Go On”, “Toy Box”, “Ol’ Evil Eye”, and “Dead Body Man”.  Quite simply, I just don’t see how any other album could make the top of this list.  It’s just that good.

Honorable Mentions:

Twiztid: Freek Show
Soopa Villainz: Furious
Blaze: Clockwork Gray
Jumpsteady: Master Of The Flying Guillotine