"Body Count"
1992, Warner Brothers
Though heavily flawed, this is still my favorite rap/rock crossover record (To be honest, I can't even stomach most Korn songs) of ANY kind. In this case, rapper Ice-T crossed over into heavy metal with Body Count, his side project of little-known musicians with corny old-school names (ex: Beatmaster V.). While his band played sloppy, ripped-off punk riffs, Ice-T ranted and raved about some of silliest cartoon violence you'll ever find on a rock record (I can't say the same thing for rap, because I have yet to hear The Geto Boys and Ice Cube's solo records). While the CD has 17 tracks, at least 4 are lame spoken-word bits, while 2 or 3 more are lame anthems for the band (OK, Body Count is "In The House"...we'll take your word for it. Just don't write a song about it!). That leaves us with less than 10 genuine rock tunes, but luckily, this is the good part of the CD. "Bowels Of The Devil", "Cop Killer", and "KKK Bitch" are fast, nitro-burning punk/metal tunes that range from good to great, depending on what mood you're in. "Body Count" and "The Winner Loses" showcase Ice-T's best lyrics and on those 2 particular songs, they're not quite as over-the-top as the pathetic macho power-slop of "Evil Dick" and "There Goes The Neighborhood". Like I said, the CD has many flaws, but if you can sift through the filler and find the best tracks (which is harder to do, now that "Cop Killer" has been deleted), you're in for a wild speed-metal experience.
RATING: 7