At the quest to review every Dope studio album ever marches on, we get to our penultimate entry: Blood Money, Pt. 1. But before we get into it, I would like to welcome you back to the series with a little introduction!
Why EDSAE?
I’ve always felt that Dope got a raw deal from critics. They were either compared to their peers too much, taken too seriously, or not seriously enough. Worse, their work is rarely judged on its own merit. Even Edsel can’t escape his own ghost – people either say, ‘This isn’t as good as his old stuff,’ or they just write it off with, ‘Life/Felons was better.’ His work is routinely judged for what it isn’t, rather than what it is. Which is why I am revisiting these amazing albums to judge them for what they are: not what they could have been, or should have been.
So let’s hop right into it.
EDSAE: Blood Money Part 1
After a seven-year hiatus, Dope returned in 2016 with Blood Money Part 1. As an album , it stays true to the band’s signature sound: aggressive, gritty, and unapologetically raw. Dope delivers a mix of pounding riffs, electronic elements, and anthemic choruses that blend seamlessly with their nihilistic lyrical themes.
The album’s production is crisp, balancing heavy guitars with electronic layers that add depth without becoming overpowering. The polished sound may be a bit too clean for fans of the band’s more raw, early work, but it’s undeniably powerful. While some songs are undoubtedly more radio friendly than previous outings, don’t make the mistake of thinking that Edsel has mellowed with age. (If anything, vocally and otherwise, he seems to be aging in reverse)
Reviewers of the time dinged this album for not reinventing the wheel. While not a direct successor to earlier outings, Blood Money Part 1 stays true to the Dope sound and aesthetic. Tracks like 1999 and Razorblade Butterfly tap into nostalgia, throwing back to the band’s early days with fast-paced riffs and gritty musicianship. Meanwhile, songs like Drug Music and Selfish embrace the hedonistic and rebellious energy that has always been central to Dope’s identity. While it’s true that this album didn’t reinvent the wheel… it didn’t need to. Not everything is about reinvention. Sometimes, an album just needs to deliver what a band does best, and Blood Money Part 1 does exactly that: giving fans the raw energy, heaviness, and hooks that made Dope stand out in the first place.
Final Verdict
Blood Money Part 1 is a strong entry for Dope, proving they still have plenty of fire. The album refines and modernizes their industrial-metal formula while delivering some of their best songwriting to date. Fans of Felons and Revolutionaries and Life will find plenty to love, while newer listeners might discover an underrated band that still knows how to bring the chaos.
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