Black Magic is the fourth studio album by Canadian hip-hop group Swollen Members. It was released on September 12, 2006 by Battle Axe Records, with distribution from TVT Records.

Recording sessions took place at Battle Axe Studios and The Warehouse in Vancouver, Crack Alley Studios in Los Angeles, Mr. Vegas Studio in Kingston, Soundproof West in Venice, Westlake Recording Studios in Hollywood, and various hotel rooms across America.

Production was handled by members Rob The Viking, Madchild and Prevail, as well as Evidence, DJ Kemo, Alchemist, Double Dragon, Squeak E. Clean and Vago, with co-producers Roger Swan, Metty The Dert Merchant and The Corn Gang.

It features guest appearances from Evidence, Alchemist, Barbie Hatch, Casual, Everlast, Ghostface Killah, Mr. Vegas, Phil Da Agony, Planet Asia, Sick Jacken, DJ Revolution, DJ Babu, DJ Swamp, and former member Moka Only, who contributed on two songs.

The album peaked at number 22 in Canada, number 21 on the US Billboard Independent Albums and number 19 on the Heatseekers Albums charts. At the Juno Awards of 2007, the album won Rap Recording of the Year. In 2008, the album's title track was remixed by Drake and JD Era.

Critical reception

Alex Thornton of AllHipHop noted a "lack of direction" throughout the album, stating "while the two are vocally distinct, their lyrics are more or less interchangeable and sometimes too complex for their own good." He said "Rob the Viking’s beats feel like uneven attempts to catch on to the Linkin Park audience."

Marisa Brown of AllMusic stated "Black Magic isn't quite as strong as the group's first two albums, but it's a step forward, aggressive and confident, with consistently strong production".

Del F. Cowie of Exclaim! said the production of the album "creates a dark mood while simultaneously being poppy" and praised the group's hit making prowess.

MVRemix expressed the album featured "traditional Swollen sound" as well as "catchy mainstream sounds". He explained "Songs like "Dark Clouds" keep that backpack rapper sound, while "Dynamite" has that club sound with a Middle Eastern twist blended with a Reggae-Dancehall vibe." He also noted "catchy pianos" and "distinctive drum patterns" on the tracks "So Deadly" and "Prisioner of Doom."

Jason Richards of Now called the album "a successful return to the dark form that won them the underground fan base".

Sean Kantrowitz of Okayplayer noted "minor key piano-based tracks dominate the majority of the album" and "the album truly clicks and conveys that sense of heaviness when it lets up a little".

Mike Schiller of PopMatters expressed that the album was "fine (at least for a while, until Mad Child fatigue sets in)". He said Rob the Viking was "one of the best constantly-mid-tempo producers".

Pedro Hernandez of RapReviews noted "the group uses dark themes as metaphors instead of going for the shock-rap route" and praised the album's production. He said it was "probably the best underground album I’ve peeped this year next to JMT's latest".

Hiphop in je smoel expressed that despite its name, the album lacked the "dark sound" of the group's "most rated" albums. He said "Good tracks are certainly on this CD, but they are too often interspersed with total misses".

Zlatan Alihodzic of Visions stated "the balancing act between entertainment and ambition succeeds, the result is half a dozen of unintrusive, almost perfect rap anthems."

Track listing

Personnel

Shane "Madchild" Bunting — vocals (tracks: 1–13, 15–21), producer (tracks: 1, 5), executive producer Kiley "Prevail" Hendriks — vocals (tracks: 2, 4–7, 9–12, 15–21), producer (track 5) Daniel "Moka Only" Denton — vocals (tracks: 6, 19) Robin "Rob The Viking" Hooper — drums (track 17), producer (tracks: 1, 2, 5–7, 10–12, 15, 17, 20), co-producer (track 4), recording (tracks: 1–7, 9, 11, 12, 16, 18, 20), mixing (track 5) Jason "Phil Da Agony" Smith — vocals (track 3) Jason "Planet Asia" Green — vocals (track 3) Jonathan "Casual" Owens — vocals (track 7) Michael "Evidence" Perretta — vocals (tracks: 8, 13), producer & recording (tracks: 3, 8, 13, 19) Dennis "Ghostface Killah" Coles — vocals (track 9) Mia Harris — vocals (track 15) Barbie Hatch — vocals (track 16) Jack "Sick Jacken" Gonzalez — vocals (track 17) Clifford "Mr. Vegas" Smith — vocals & recording (track 18) Erik "Everlast" Schrody — vocals & guitar (track 19) Bryan "Metty The Dert Merchant" Trevitt — backing vocals (track 6), co-producer (track 10) Elmo Chong — backing vocals, strings, producer & recording (track 21) Roy Chong — backing vocals, strings, producer & recording (track 21) Chi Turner — backing vocals (track 21) Kurt "DJ Revolution" Hoffman — scratches (tracks: 3, 7, 13) Russ Kline — guitar (track 6) Darcy Ladret — guitar (track 8), bass (track 13) Bryant Olender — piano (tracks: 10, 15) Chris Gestrin — organ (track 10), mini moog (track 17) Kyla Tamiko "Kytami" LeBlanc — violin (tracks: 10, 15) Fin Manish — cello (tracks: 10, 15) Chris "DJ Babu" Oroc — scratches (track 12) Jeff Babko — Wurlitzer organ & clavinet (track 13) Kevin Coles — guitar (track 17) Keefus Ciancia — piano, bass & strings (track 19) Ronald K. "DJ Swamp" Keys Jr. — scratches (track 20) Cristian "DJ Kemo" Bahamonde — producer (tracks: 2, 4), co-producer (track 18) Alan "The Alchemist" Maman — producer & recording (track 9) Sam "Squeak E. Clean" Spiegel — producer & recording (track 16) D. "Vago" Orellana — producer (track 18) Roger Swan — co-producer (tracks: 10, 15, 17), recording (tracks: 10, 14, 15), mixing (tracks: 4, 6, 7, 10, 15, 17) The Corn Gang — co-producers (track 16) Richard "Segal" Huredia — mixing (tracks: 2, 3, 8, 9, 11–13, 16, 18–21) Jason Rankins — engineering assistant (tracks: 3, 8, 13, 20) Amy Worobec — engineering assistant (tracks: 4, 6) Mike Cashin — mixing assistant (tracks: 10, 15), engineering assistant (track 17) Dan Okano — mixing assistant (track 15) Sean Tallman — engineering assistant (track 19) Bernie Grundman — mastering Marcello De Cotiis — executive producer Chris Allen — art direction Mark Gainor — art direction Graham Winterbottom — sleeve photo

Charts Chart (2006) Peak positionCanadian Albums (Jam!) 22US Independent Albums (Billboard) 21US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard) 19

References

External links