Its interesting to see bands that become HUGELY successful for whatever reason and then the next second, they seem to have fallen off the face of the earth. Puddle of Mud, Trapt, (insert nu-metal band of choice), and so seems to go with Powerman 5000. We have all heard "When Worlds Collide" and we all remember the uneven, but fun record
Tonight The Stars Revolt!, but what happened afterwards?
Its been a long time and a few records since TTSR, and the only original member of PM5K is vocalist Spider (or spider one, or spyder, it doesn't matter). And though most will disagree, the band is still somehow making some decent music. Its time to let go of the Powerman you once knew and embrace the brain-dead hard rock extravaganza that is
Destroy What You Enjoy.
And that is exactly what this record features an abundance of, brain-dead rock n roll. This is a record for those who just want a quick fix on some half-way decent hard rock, and on that level, DWYE delivers in spades. From the terrific album opener
Destroy What You Enjoy to the great ending live track version of
Heroes And Villains, there is plenty of loud, high distortion guitars and catchy choruses.
We all understand the format, so what exactly makes the album a good listen? First and foremost, this is a fun record. Its hard to define music as fun, but simply put, this album could be played in your car, at a party, during a soccer riot, hell... maybe even in a club (though I doubt it). The point is, this is a very accessible recording and most listeners will thoroughly enjoy the relatively simple song structures and "sing-along" style vocals especially on tracks like
Wild World and
Who Do You Think You Are?. It almost seems as if Powerman are taking their musical styles about as seriously as their listeners will be... not serious at all. Reckless rock is what you came for, Powerman seem to understand this with a certain degree of proficiency.
The other strength comes in the music itself. The guitars harmonize fairly well and the drummer keeps things moving along at a great pace, never missing a beat with the rest of the members. You'll be head-banging to a good majority of the album. Also, Powerman 5000 are smart enough to know when a song is running out of steam, case in point,
Enemies. This song is just over two minutes long and that's all it needs. The band seems to realize this and whereas most songs would continue into some obscure bridge, the song ends rather abruptly with a wonderfully placed "the end."
Despite these strong points, however, there are a few glaring problems with the sound Powerman seems to be settling into.
Spider's vocals have remained the same for virtually every record since
Mega!! Kung Fu Radio and though some will be pleased to hear this, many will be turned off. Spider doesn't have any range to speak of and his voice often sounds like it was recorded after a night of boozing and excessive shouting, which may not be far from the truth. Despite this, his voice is tolerable most of the album and saved in most cases by the sheer catchiness of the lyrics. The vocals ruin only one song, the abysmal
Miss America.
The other issue is the lack of depth in the music. You are exposed to one type of song, and its repeated for 9 or 10 tracks. Though they are varied somewhat, the repetitive nature of the album makes it hard to enjoy beyond a quick listen or while individual songs are picked out on your Ipod.
The last con has to do with the interludes
Construction of the Masses parts 1 and 2. Basically, to briefly explain, Spider attempts rapping again. Where it worked on
The Good, Bad, and the Ugly, it's a tragedy here. Skip it.
Despite these cons and obvious weak spots, Powerman 5000 have put out a great rock record. Dumb enough to put a smile on your face and smart enough to know when to move along (90% of the time). Those coming in expecting TTSR are more than likely going to be disappointed (I no longer consider PM5K to be nu-metal), but those looking for a good time and some more hard rock in the same vein of Powerman's previous work,
Transform, you'll be happy you picked this up. Personally, I think its about time a band released a record that makes you want to through your shiny new XBOX out the window of a five story building. Destroy What You Enjoy? I can get used to that.
Check out...
Destroy What You Enjoy
Wild World
Walking Disaster
Heroes And Villains (Live)
Return to the City of the Dead
