“Terrorstorm” featuring Vinnie Paz, Celph Titled, Block McCloud, Reef the Lost Cauze, Esoteric, Crypt the Warchild & Apathy from the new album Heavy Lies The Crown available October 21, 2014. Produced by C-Lance. Directed by Prime Cut.

From the new Army of the Pharaohs album In Death Reborn. Directed by Sam Lipman-Stern.

You have to hand it to Jedi Mind Tricks’ frontman, Vinnie Paz, that even in the post-indie hip-hop apocalypse aftermath, he is still able to organize the various members of Army Of The Pharaohs every year or so to bang out a full-length album. And that is pretty much what they do, as In Death Reborn is a relentless, beat-you-over-the-head, stab-you-with-a-box-cutter, no-nonsense lyrically driven, hardcore hip-hop album, from top to bottom.

There’s not much room for highly conceptual songs, or on the opposite end of the spectrum, simpler radio/club friendly tracks, on In Death Reborn. What you’re getting here is roughly 15 emcees in friendly competition, roasting rugged beats with a series of scorching battle rap verses. At the head is Vinnie Paz, who ups the lyrical ante himself, spitting bilingual verses in English and Spanish / Italian, on songs like “See You In Hell”, or raps with breathless precision on “God Particle”.

With the bar raised this high, everyone is bringing their best to the table, but who really steals the spotlight is Apathy, who delivers jaw-dropping verses with fluid cadence all over the album. “Broken Safety” finds Ap adjusting his voice and delivery to the darkness of the track, while both “Luxor Temple” and “Visual Camouflage” are also standout moments. Everyone is on their A-game here, but Ap’s rhymes are worth the price of admission alone.

With many familiar faces, at times this feels like a Demigodz album, as many of the members intersect with both crews. And that’s not a bad thing, it really just boils down to that this is Vinnie’s brand, and Demigodz is Ap and Celph’s. Kind of like how Wolverine is both an X-Men and an Avenger, if you will.

The only downside of In Death Reborn is that with a team deeper than the original Wu-Tang Clan, many casual fans will not recognize some of the less popular members. The core of the team keeps the album feeling cohesive, however. Secondly, the record does get a bit monotonous in some places, as the songs trade traditional 3-verse-and-a-hook song structure for unconventional five or six verse tracks. While the production can be overbearing at times, thankfully they know when to pull back, on pared down beats like “Luxor Temple” and “Sumerians”, which really stand out.

All in all, ATOP’s delivered another solid record with In Death Reborn. Despite a long list of names that make up the crew, rarely do you feel lost among unknown voices, because everyone is bringing their best to the table. This is a lyric-heads’ album through-and-through, so if you’re looking for dumbed down hooks or soft radio records, go somewhere else. Otherwise, this one will make you wish you still had a rewind button.

Featuring Vinnie Paz, Apathy, Celph Titled, Esoteric and Reef the Lost Cauze from the Army of the Pharaohs new album In Death Reborn available April 22nd on Enemy Soil. Produced by Blastah Beatz.

Army of the Pharaohs “God Particle” featuring Vinnie Paz, Planetary, Esoteric, Apathy & Celph Titled. Produced by Stu Bangas. Cuts by DJ Kwestion. From the upcoming album In Death Reborn available on April 22, 2014 on Enemy Soil and now available for pre-order. Video Directed by Jimmy Giambrone and co-directed by Steve Perrong.

Army of the Pharaohs In Death Reborn Tracklist:

1. Curse of the Pharaohs featuring Vinnie Paz, Apathy, Celph Titled, Esoteric & Reef the Lost Cauze (produced by Blastah Beatz)
2. Midnight Burial featuring Reef the Lost Cauze, Crypt the Warchild, Esoteric, Des Devious & Celph Titled (produced by C-Lance)
3. Broken Safeties featuring Apathy, Lawrence Arnell, Vinnie Paz & Celph Titled (produced by Vanderslice)
4. God Particle featuring Vinnie Paz, Planetary, Esoteric, Apathy & Celph Titled (produced by Stu Bangas)
5. Luxor Temple featuring Blacastan, Vinnie Paz, Apathy, Esoteric, Celph Titled & Planetary (produced by Paul Nice)
6. Azrael featuring Block McCloud, Reef the Lost Cauze, Vinnie Paz & Crypt the Warchild (produced by Frank Grimes)
7. The Demon’s Blade featuring Vinnie Paz, Celph Titled, Apathy, Blacastan, Planetary & Esoteric (produced by Leaf Dog)
8. See You In Hell featuring Celph Titled, Planetary, Blacastan & Vinnie Paz (produced by C-Lance)
9. Headless Ritual featuring Blacastan, Apathy, Vinnie Paz, King Syze, Zilla & Planetary (produced by Apathy)
10. Visual Camouflage featuring Apathy, Zilla, Vinnie Paz, King Magnetic, Celph Titled, Esoteric (produced by Juan Muteniac)
11. Ninkyo Dantai (Yakuza) featuring Vinnie Paz, Celph Titled, Blacastan, Apathy, Esoteric & Planetary (produced by Panik)
12. Digital War featuring Celph Titled, Planetary, Blacastan, Esoteric, Apathy, Crypt the Warchild & Vinnie Paz (produced by Lecs Beats)
13. 7th Ghost featuring Reef the Lost Cauze, Doap Nixon, Blacastan, Demoz & Vinnie Paz (produced by Grim Reaperz)
14. Sumerians featuring Vinnie Paz, Blacastan, Apathy, Celph Titled & Esoteric (produced by Frank Grimes)

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