SCUM OF THE EARTH
Blah...Blah...Blah...
Eclipse Records 2004
www.scumoftheearth.com

What’s the 4-1-1?
One part Zombie, two parts Powerman. Love Songs for the New Millennium is the debut album from Rob Zombie guitarist Riggs and Powerman 5000 guitarist Mike Tempesta (brother John Tempesta helps out too).

Genre
Hard rock / metal / industrial

The Good
The heavy guitars and background effects on “I Am the Scum” come at you like a hungry pack of wolves. You'll notice that Riggs’ vocals are similar To Rob Zombie's, but he does sound slightly different. The driving beat of “Bloodsuckingfreakshow” is enhanced by the moans of a satanic-loving devil woman. The guitar effects on “Get Your Dead On” have a funky seventies twang to them. Riggs’ album up to this point treads the same ground that he did with Rob Zombie, but “Little Spider” sounds a lot different. The vocal tones are just as deep and creepy, but it's an acoustic heavy ballad (not exactly a lovey-dovey ballad).

“Murder Song” starts off with a classic horror movie clip and is followed by chunky driving riffs. “The Devil Made Me Do It” is loaded with effects, wailing guitars, and pounding drumbeats. Another ballad type song appears in “Give up Your Ghost”. Instead of acoustic guitars Riggs and company utilize a sitar which gives the track a more haunting feel. This CD also has an enhanced media section. It's interesting to note it because it has a feature called ‘Umixit’, in which you the listener can remix one of the tracks the way you want.

The Bad
“Pornstar Champion” is a horrible parody of Queen’s “We Will Rock You”. It even uses samples from the original, but that doesn’t even save it. It’s an insult to Queen.

The Verdict
I'll be the first to admit that Scum of the Earth sounds a lot like Rob Zombie, but what would you expect from his guitar player? If Rob isn't going to commit to another album you might as well have the next best thing. You won't be disappointed.

Did you know?
“Pornstar Champion” was originally written for the Any Given Sunday Soundtrack.

Rating: out of 5

--George Dionne