Prozak

April 19, 2024

Reviews > Album Reviews > Prozak – Black Ink

Black Ink

Sunday 22nd November, 2015 by Xanarki | 0 Comments

Our Rating

User Rating

(3 votes, average: 4.67 out of 5)

Loading...

Prozak’s sixth overall solo release has been dropped to the masses, named Black Ink. After a two year long wait, Black Ink has a wide variety of styles and guests on the album. Pretty much every song (except the first and last tracks) has a guest appearance on it, ranging from Tech N9ne to Twiztid to Krizz Kaliko to Zodiac MPrint and many more. But the real star of the show is obviously Prozak, and the two year wait has people wondering if he has delivered a solid album, or if the plethora of guest features outshines the star itself.

1. Intro
2. Purgatory (feat. Tech N9ne/Krizz Kaliko)
3. War Within (feat. Ces Cru)
4. Tomorrow (feat. Krizz Kaliko)
5. Do You Know Where You Are? (feat. Tech N9ne/Twiztid)
6. House of Cards (feat. Kate Rose)
7. Erased (feat. Mackenzie O’Guin)
8. Killing Me (feat. Krizz Kalko/Zodiac MPrint)
9. The Plague (feat. Madchild/UBI)
10. My Life (feat. Wrekonize/Bernz)
11. Black Ink (feat. Mackenzie O’Guin)
12. People of the Outside (feat. Tyler Lyon)
13. Your Creation

Overall, the beats on this release is quite solid. There’s a diversity among the songs, ranging from melodic and dreamy to metallic and punchy. The production value surpasses anything Prozak has released prior, for sure. “Erased” has pounding drum samples mixed with industrialized electronica lines. Prozak flows his verses perfectly with the beat, and his altered voice during the hook matches the beat with ease. “My Life” is a standout track. Although the hook is inaudible (he says “thinking about” repeatedly by the way), it’s a catchy part. Although the hook has a machine gun pound to it, the backing music for the verses is drastically different. The repeating guitar and rhythmic instruments contrasts the hook but it creates a solid track. Although Wreknoize is a pick and choose rapper, Bernz has a standout verse, and flows perfectly.

“Purgatory” is the lead single from the album. The keyboards and effects create a suspending atmosphere, and is interesting; however, the hook is a bit too melodic to serve as the lead opening song. It’s anticlimactic and doesn’t hold the song on its own at all. Similar structure is used in other songs as well. “Tomorrow” is an example that has melodic singing in the chorus. Although singing by no means is a turn off, it just comes off as uninteresting and doesn’t match up to the stronger points of the album, and that’s aimed towards a portion of this release. “Black Ink” is a decent exception, as Mackenize O’Guin makes a standout performance in the hook. Her voice is eerie and gives off a haunting sense of scenery. This is drastically different than Kate Rose appearing on “House of Cards”, as her voice doesn’t have the same mystique as Mackenize O’Guin.

“Do You Know Where You Are?” features both Twiztid and Tech N9ne. The beat is hard-hitting, and has a solid rapcore metal element to it. Tech N9ne spits out lines that is just as hard as the beat itself. Lately, Twiztid has been embracing the rock and metal elements in their music. This song shows them relating to the genres yet again, and pulls it off without any problems. Including Prozak, all four of these artists sound awesome and it’s a memorable collaboration.

A slight throwback to early 2000s hip hop is shown in “The Plague” as the steady piano and consistent beat is reminiscent of that era in the genre. Prozak plays it off well, and it’s a nice change from the rest of the album. “Killing Me” is worth nothing for the appearance of Zodiac MPrint, which is the duo of Blaze Ya Dead Homie and The R.O.C. The duo’s long awaited album has been shelved for over a decade, but their appearance together on this album is a warm welcome without a doubt.

With Prozak’s narrative on life and death of misery in general, lyrically, this is one of his more complex releases. All of the topics he touches are deeply menacing to the fullest degree. He shows no sense of humor, but that’s not a bad thing at all. At least he stays consistent, and does not disappoint in the slightest bit.

To answer the previous question, the vast array of guest appearances do not overshadow Prozak’s artistic abilities. If anything, it’s a solid addition to an already finalized album. Although there are a few potholes, overall, it’s an album that is sure to be stapled into Prozak’s discography for years to come.