Twelve Reasons To Die, the tenth solo album by Wu Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah, may well be one of his strongest. A cracking collection of dramatic and atmospheric hip hop, Twelve Reasons To Die takes its inspiration from a comic book of the same, which follows a character called Tony Stark, who in ‘60s Italy fights against a crime organisation, falls in love with the kingpin’s daughter, and seeks revenge when she is murdered.

Produced by Adrian Younge, Twelve Reasons To Die has a distinctively soundtrack-y feel: one of the main inspirations was iconic composer Ennio Morricone. The album was executive produced by Wu-Tang figurehead RZA, whose work has soundtracked some famous movie moments, particularly in Kill Bill, whilst he also composed scores for the likes of indie maverick Jim Jarmusch.
Twelve Reasons To Die makes masterful use of strings, which give the album a wonderful, darkly dramatic feel, whilst the economical deployment of unsettling piano notes also provide an atmosphere of tension and foreboding. There is an appealing variety to the album too, with the energetic likes of ‘Rise Of The Black Suits’, ‘I Declare War’ and ‘The Rise Of The Ghostface’ offset by slower numbers, such as the R&B jam ‘The Center Of Attention’ and the quirky ‘Revenge Is Sweet’.
After a string of hit albums, Ghostface Killah suffered something of a dip in fortunes with 2010’s Apollo Kids, which despite critical acclaim failed to crack the Billboard Top 100. His stock should rise considerably once again with Twelve Reasons To Die.

Key Track:‘Rise Of The Black Suits’