Review: DMX’s “Flesh Of My Flesh, Blood Of My Blood” (1998)
The heavy hitter from Yonkers’ follow up to his gigantic debut and second chart topping album in one year
Hot off the success of his debut album It’s Dark And Hell Is Hot in May of 1998 DMX conquered not only the charts but the sophomore slump… in the same fucking year. Released just seven months after his debut DMX cemented his presence in the hip hop scene after years of toiling in the underground and robbing people just to stay alive. It’s an incredible feat which I don’t believe has been reached by any artist since then and in listening to both of these albums you can see why.
Returning with his cruddy raps about street crime and the bombastic production of the Ruff Ryders in-house producers, the recipe for success was one DMX had all the ingredients for. At the time it would seem like an album produced within seven months of an artists debut would be rushed or not up to snuff with their previous effort. In today’s hip hop landscape we see rappers do this every couple of months but in 1998 it was a bit different, people would judge your material harshly. The difference here is that this is DMX we’re talking about, whatever he was going to deliver to us he was going to put all of himself into. Flesh Of My Flesh, Blood Of My Blood is just as essential as DMX’s classic debut and closes off the most important year in DMX’s life with a resounding “WHAT?!”
The albums opener may be a little repetitive but it’s that singalong style that made DMX’s “Ruff Ryders Anthem” his most highlighted moment on It’s Dark And Hell Is Hot. He kicks us off with a song whose title I am unable to write and it’s certainly a memorable start to this album and assures us DMX hasn’t lost any of his fire. The opening lines “Just cause I love my n*****, I shed blood for my n*****” allude to the albums title which refers to DMX’s loyal friends in the Ruff Ryders as his flesh and blood. The albums theme of loyalty is prevalent throughout with songs like “Dogs For Life” and “We Don’t Give A Fuck.” It’s all strewn throughout the song titles and the lyrical content, DMX’s first album was a personal testament and now this album is all about his dogs.
This love for his affiliates and friends shows just as much about DMX than it does his friends, more in fact. DMX was all about giving back rather than taking and we get a true glimpse of that on this album as he builds up his team in order for them to conquer the rap game in the coming weeks. It’s rooted in his love for dogs, he knows they’re more loyal than humans and DMX values loyalty above all else.
Despite the constant references to his Ruff Ryders affiliates and friends, Flesh Of My Flesh contains some of X’s most deeply personal tracks. The standout track from the album has to be “Slippin’” which I’ve always considered the song DMX could’ve laid in his grave after writing, I feel awful writing this now. He presented his life more in-depth and honestly than MC’s had done before him and I don’t think anyone has achieved this depth since. It’s a haunting track to listen to now in his death but was just as haunting when he was alive. “Slippin’” showed that DMX found a voice to speak on a lot of the issues he faced throughout his life and career and it’s unfortunate the song wasn’t enough to save him.
Some other personal tracks for the album are the brooding sequel to “Damien” called “The Omen.” This track is much more dark and horror themed than the previous track and stacks up just as well as the first installment of the Damien series. I’ve said before that DMX falls short to me with his fantasy themed songs but the Damien series always danced along the line of biographical to me. It was made scary by how close X always seemed to live up to these songs. The addition of Marilyn Manson singing the chorus “The snake, the rat, the cat and the dog. How you gonna live when you’re in the fog?” was superbly hair-raising. The interactions between this Damien character and DMX himself show his ability to rap as two different voices and people and I’ve always loved X’s ability to see the duality of his style.
There’s a decent list of features on this album as well, his aforementioned loyalty to Ruff Ryders is apparent with his features from The LOX on two songs. “We Don’t Give A Fuck” features a verse from Styles P and the insanely quotable chorus “Used to be my dog you was in my left titty, screamed ride or die I thought you would die with me, found out you a bitch you can’t even ride with me, now it’s a war and you ain’t on the side with me” was done by Jadakiss. The two along with Sheek and Jay-Z are also featured on the classic cut “Blackout” in the latter half of the album. There’s also the heartfelt “Comin’ From” which features Mary J. Blige but for the most part DMX stays loyal to his crew and it pays off in dividends.
This album also presents some of Swizz Beatz’s most extensive work on a DMX album and presented him as the rising star of the Ruff Ryders camp. The young brains behind the beat of “Ruff Ryders Anthem” produces 10 of the 16 tracks on this album, overshadowing the prevalent producers on X’s previous effort. Despite the prevalence of Swizz Dame Grease still earns a spot with one of my favorite beats he’s ever produced on “Dogs For Life.” his only contribution to the album. P.K. also gets a couple tracks in with the standout being “Bring Your Whole Crew,” which remains one of DMX’s toughest tracks ever made.
Despite all its positives I can’t ignore the negative aspects of the album. It doesn’t feel as cohesive as his previous effort and that makes it apparent this album was done in a hurried fashion. I also think X’s lyrical nature is a bit choppy at times, unfocused considering this album isn’t as conceptual as his debut. The anthemic tracks on this album don’t exactly reach the heights songs like “Ruff Ryders Anthem” or “Get At Me Dog” achieved and I think that has to do with Dame and P.K. taking a backseat on this album. They don’t get enough credit for the creation of X’s rough, cruddy rap style.
If I were conscious enough to have been a DMX fan in 1998 I would have had ample material to be excited about. For him to destroy the charts and change the rap landscape forever with his debut and then to double that commercial success with Flesh Of My Flesh, Blood Of My Blood… there just aren’t words. If the rap game didn’t believe what he told them seven months prior then you best believe people couldn’t ignore him once he had two albums on the charts.
No matter what I say about it this album still carries the weight of being the second DMX album that shattered chart expectations and branded the world with his name. After 1998 no one could ignore the streetwise nihilism that DMX was spitting across the rough and adrenaline injecting beats. No rapper since Tupac had done what DMX did in 1998, having two chart topping albums out in the same year. This album deserves just as much recognition as his classic debut for giving listeners a deeper emotional peak into the mind of raps most formidable yet loyal and charismatic character.
