Release Date: 24 October 2025
Song Count: 16
Duration: 46 minutes, 10 seconds
Rating: 8.6/10
Description:
Another very recent release from an artist I've been actively listening to for a while now, DJ The Prophet's Out Of The Box is a very special case in terms of albums, as it serves as more of a hybrid of a set of long-standing unreleased tracks from across the years, rather than a full-fledged newly forged piece in itself like most albums rated on here tend to be. The reason for this is the fact that Dov Joseph Elkabas, the man behind the name DJ The Prophet and the one who has been deemed the title "Godfather of Hardstyle", has been inactive and fully retired from the music scene since 2023, and Out Of The Box is meant to be a parting gift of him to his fans and to the world of hardstyle one last time.
What one hears within this album are 16 tracks of catchy and electric beats, samples and dance tracks that are signatedly Hardstyle to their very core. Mixtures of high speeds, engaging melodic samples, tense buildups, bombastic and banging kicks, and an overall excellence in production, this bunch of songs aim for a fun and enjoyable listen meant to get the listener out of their own seat, and they end up delivering exactly what they promise on all possible fronts. The usage of varied samples to set each song apart as memorable and distinct from the rest as well as the additional talents of other artists - such as fellow Dutch DJ and producer Noisecontrollers and singer Leonie Meijer in the track "Make Me Stay (2K16 IQ Kick Mix)" - only amplify these tracks and the experience overall further.
Other highlights of the album include "Lazer Beams (2K20)", "Undercover (2K15)", "The Maze (2K19)", "Arcadia (2K21)", and my personal favourite, "D1G1T4L3 (2K20) (Ode to Thom)", a fantastic song dedicated to a colleague of Elkabas, producer Thomas Duddridge, after his unfortunate passing a few years back.
The final track of Out Of The Box is one that differs from the rest: instead of a hardstyle track, an acoustic piano version of "One Moment" is to be heard, closing everything off on a rather somber note and signifying both a moment of silence for his colleague the preceding song was an ode to and The Prophet's farewell to the world of music after one last hurrah to send it all off on.
Truly a great finale album for the aptly titled Godfather of Hardstyle. Thank you for the music, DJ The Prophet!
And may you rest in peace, Thomas Duddridge, also known as The Anarchist.