|
By GREG MAKI
Powerman 5000 has had one of the most curious careers of any band. They began life as a rap-metal hybrid before donning spacesuits for the science-fiction-themed, industrial-metal-tinged breakthrough Tonight the Stars Revolt! in 1999. Two years later, the planned follow-up, Anyone for Doomsday?, was pulled from release just days before it was due in stores. The band soon jettisoned its rhythm section, as well. Powerman 5000 finally returned in 2003—minus the costumes and with a new drummer and bassist—with Transform and a new, rawer, punk-influenced sound. It didn’t always work, but it has proven to be a necessary step for the band to reach the heights to which it has climbed with its latest release, Destroy What You Enjoy.
Frontman Spider may still look like Billy Idol, but the band—now featuring new guitarists Johnny Heatley and Terry Corso, along with returning drummer Adrian Ost and bassist Siggy Sjursen—is tighter than ever. Taking the new lineup on the road before entering the recording studio appears to have paid off in a big way. The album bears an even stronger punk influence than Transform, and the band, with its new members and a couple years of playing this style under their belts, has grown much more comfortable with it. The melodies are stronger (Spider finally sounds like a true singer), and the riffs are meaner and dirtier. The improvement from Transform to this album goes all the way around.
The band succeeds at offering variety within the somewhat narrow genre into which it has settled. The title track is an energetic, fist-pumping anthem. “Wild Word” veers toward more radio-friendly pop-punk, but the thick, full sound courtesy of producer Mudrock (who also produced PM5K’s major label debut, Mega!! Kung Fu Radio) blows away anything you’ll hear from the MTV pretenders. “Murder,” with Spider’s best melody yet, is instantly catchy and could be a big hit if released as a single. On the other hand, “Enemies” and “Walking Disaster” sound like they were found in a Sex Pistols vault, muddy production and all. And it wouldn’t be a PM5K album without a song that comes completely out of left field. This time, it’s “Miss America ,” an acoustic, country-tinged Southern rock number. It’s more than a curiosity; it’s one of the most entertaining songs on the disc. For good measure, a live version of “Heroes and Villains,” a song originally released online more than a year ago, is tacked on at the end.
It took a while, but Powerman 5000 finally has given us an album worthy of the band that made Tonight the Stars Revolt! Though the two have nothing in common, Destroy What You Enjoy rivals it as the best of the band’s career.
|
