Review Summary: Moronic Suburban American White Male Trash
First off, let me say one thing. I view music for its qualities and whether it will stand up on its own merits in x number of years. Great music is timeless irrespective of the era it originated from. It should not be judged positively if the artist is the product of media advertising or commercial popularity. I collect and love music from classical, blues, rock, metal, jazz, experimental, Indie, and even some hip-hop. This band and its output is THE LOWEST COMMON DENOMINATOR in popular music I have ever heard. It represents the dumbing down to a lobotomy of a long and rich musical heritage in music. My theory is this. Rap moves out of its original sources and seeps out into suburban white America. The original ideologies and talent is transformed into a banal, pathetic excuse for noise which even the most tone deaf and untalented industrialist could improve upon if they had no arms or legs and were fed on a diet of baked beans. This is narcissistic, moronic, penis/cranuim intertwined garbage. If you really think this has any qualities I do feel sorry for you as you were dealt a cruel hand in life. If you think this album says something or if it gives you a bit of spine because it says things you are too gutless to say or do then face it, you can't cut it in this world. What's the word - Loser, that's it. Get a life and explore the huge amount of music that is actually created by artists with intelligence and talent.
Now, with that said, how many times can Wes Boreland smash the same 3 chords on a detuned 7 string guitar and expect to get away with it? I liked "Significant Other", and the raw energy on "Three Dollar Bill Y'all$" was pretty inspiring. However, "Chocolate Starfish And The Hotdog Flavored Water" did absolutley NOTHING to squash the feelings in the minds of fans that Fred Durst is a totally empty songwriter. It seemed like every lyric in every song seemed to say nothing more than "Limp Bizkit in the house" Not to mention, the extreme proliferation of the f-bomb is used so much it becomes grating and utterly painful. And, do you remember when his voice roared on the first two albums? On This album it sounded like the rest of the band was pinching his nipples while he recorded his vocals.
I had the misfortune of being stuck in a car while the driver played this steaming pile of crap. In all seriousness, knowing that he owned it forever diminished my respect for the guy.This album probably has the corniest lyrics I've ever heard. It seems like Durst bought a Fisher-Price "My First Rock Song" kit and used it to compose each track. In fact, some of the tunes are so childish they sound like a louder version of Adam Sandler. The lyrics on this album fail to provide anything meaningful, just a bunch of cliche rap sayings and he can't even execute that right.
Limp Bizkit exhausted all of their talent on Significant Other, which of course does not say much. The band tried to legitimize their work (if you want to call it that) by inviting some legitimate musicians to do a couple a songs with them. They failed at this as well. Durst can not sing near as well as Scott Weiland and his attempt to flow with Xzbit was truly a sad and pathetic attempt to rap.
I know what you're thinking: Which song is the worst? That's a tough question. "My Way" is certainly a worthy contender for worst song, that is until you hear "Rollin'" without the benefit of being deaf. One could also make a strong case for "My Generation," until he's subjected to "Getcha Groove On" (it's even worse than it sounds).
It doesn't matter which song is the worst, really. By record's end, you won't be able to tell them apart anyway. They all just become white noise after a while. And no matter how happy you are in life, this album will leave you contemplating suicide. Maybe that's why Durst has a Cobain tattoo.
Now I know why it's called CHOCOLATE STARFISH AND THE HOT DOG FLAVORED WATER...because it feels like sodomy.
