Lordi - Babez for breakfast 3/5
Reviewed: 10-1-10
Tracklist:
1. SCG5: It's a boy!
2. Babez for breakfast
3. This is heavy metal
4. Rock police
5. Discoevil
6. Call off the wedding
7. I am bigger than you
8. ZombieRawkMachine
9. Midnite Lover
10. Give your life for rock and roll
11. Nonstop nite
12. Amen's lament to ra
13. Loud and Loaded
14. Granny's gone crazy
15. Devil's lullaby
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The dedicated zombie rock machine known as Lordi have finished another kiss of death, but is this heavy metal? Since this was produced by Michael Wagener who has worked with so many great artists including Accept, Metallica and HammerFall, I expected another nonstop nightmarish release. Sadly, the production is awful, and the hard rock songs do not always have me shouting, "Hallelujah!"
Someone call the Rock Police, when does this get heavy! After all the years of defending Lordi over Gwar, sadly I prefer the latest Gwar - 'Lust In Space' to 'Babez for breakfast'. I am very excited about seeing Gwar in October, and hearing their new CD 'Gwar's bloody pit of horror', due out in early November.
The important thing to remember is that this is Lordi, and I love these monstermen! So like a rabid dog, I claw my nails, and I bite my tongue to tolerate the bull. I will not be so lambent; because, even though 'Babez for breakfast' does have the coolest, most lurid Lordi cover artwork to date, the music at times just does not bring back the balls to rock.
The CD begins very strong, and the chorus to "Babez for breakfast" is far from the quotidian, most important meal of the day, but hey, this is Lordi! The monster hit "This is heavy metal" is another studs 'n' leatherbound theme, which sees the paradoxical beast let loose again, and at times carries the venereal "Sex type thing" riff off Stone Temple Pilots.
Then the subsequent songs begin to lose momentum, even if Bruce Kulick does play lead guitar for the pure form romance, yet commercial - "Call off the wedding" - a dazed and confused anthem. "Discoevil", "ZombieRawkMachine" and "Midnite Lover " are all good, but not great songs.
Lordi are known for creating stand out hits, but this time there may be a small helping handful. Have you ever noticed that their biggest cuts all abound with alliteration abusing the letter "B"? For example: "Bringing back the balls to rock", "Bite it like a bulldog", "Beast loose in paradise", or "Blood red sandman". I guess "Babez for breakfast" is no exception. I missed out on the pallid dramatic free bib offer when I ordered my CD from The End Records, at least it was cheaper than at Best Buy. Apparently they promoted a video game to coincide with the release of the new CD and single, as well.
When I first saw the title for "Midnite lover", I was wondering if it would sound like "Midnight mover" by Accept, a song which Lordi recorded as a live track in 2003 for the single version of 'They only come out at night'. Actually, unlike all previous loud and loaded Lordi laudations, never once does Mr. Lordi sound like his idol Udo on the new CD.
On a side note, I must comment how much I do love the new Accept CD 'Blood of the nations'. This may be the most significant metal release of the year, as neither this CD from Lordi nor the new Iron Maiden can compare, in my opinion. I will see them on October 8th in Cleveland, and I have been invited to the meet-and-greet party with free pizza and Pepsi. Accept are one of my all-time favourite bands, and this will be a highlight of my year; since I missed their amazing performance at this year's Prog/Power festival, according to colleague Kit's and Mark Gromen's reviews.
The depiction of the voracious babe on the cover nursing from his voluptuous mother's ilk, mirrors the music, which itself is extremely curvaceous and akin to a rollercoaster constantly rising and falling. The peaks and valleys are dizzying. By the time you get to sink your teeth into "Give your life for rock and roll", you can finally begin to bang your head again. Here Lordi are aching to honour their dead with indirect references to Eric Carr, Freddie Mercury, and Wendy O' Williams in the opening verse. "Nonstop nite" is also a crowd pleaser, and "Loud and loaded" will have you firing off your love gun, willing to shout shit out loud.
It must be Mr. Lordi's love of Kiss, and all their connections, namely Vinnie Vincent's Invasion which hooked him up with Mark Slaughter to contribute vocal lines for "Granny's gone crazy", but this song and the closer "Devil's lullaby" replete with the "Adam's family" eerie key effects save the sanity of one hell of a snow job.
We all know the Devil is a loser, and it can be a bitch to appreciate what Lordi have purported forth. That said, Lordi are true to their mettle hearts, and their horrific minds, and I respect whatever they spew forth, even if at times, some of the more poppy seeds of dissent on 'Babez for breakfast', may give me a slight headache.
MICHAEL
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