Mindless Self Indulgence

You’ll Rebel to Anything (Metropolis)
By Wa

Imagine for a moment if Marilyn Manson or Jonathan Davis (of Korn) joined a new wave/synth band, and brought with them their band’s nü metal guitar sound. Throw in some overt influences of Ministry, Atari Teenage Riot, and every punk band that’s ever lived (as well as the sophomoric hijinks of twelve year olds), and you’ve got the sound of Mindless Self Indulgence‘s You’ll Rebel to Anything.

M.S.I.’s new album toes the line of their earlier full-length albums, the alphabetized track arrangement of Frankenstein Girls Will Strangely Seem Sexy (2000) and the everything-you-never-wanted-to-know-about-genitals genesis, Tight (1999).

Their brand of chaos metal, if you want to call it that, owes a nod to the tongue-in-cheek albums of Stormtroopers of Death (S.O.D.), Public Enemy, and Devo, but with a 21st Century technological twist. Keeping with the punk aesthetic, songs are quick to the punch, fist fights rarely if ever exceed three minutes in length, and the lyrics touch on anything and everything iconoclastic. Subjects include their take on prostitution, drug use, obtuse people, the music played by their contemporaries, apathy, and dregs of conformity. Included is a cover of Rush’s classic “Tom Sawyer” that sounds as if it was eaten by a polka band and then vomited up through a punk band filter. It offers an original twist on the usual cover of a rock standard, though the lyrics are completely mangled by vocalist Little Jimmy Urine. Two listens and you’ve reached its total entertainment value.

As a bonus, they’ve included a Quicktime music video of the title track, “You’ll Rebel to Anything (As Long as its Not Challenging).” The video is comprised of romantic ’50s clips that exhibit the “joys” of conformity. These clips are contrasted against the footage of today’s youth, showing a stark difference in belief structures. It even includes an outrageously funny clip near the end of the video of a much younger George W. Bush (most likely the cocaine years), who appears to be on a television program of some sort, giving the camera the full-on middle finger treatment.

Not a recommended buy. Save your money for something a bit more intelligent.
(www.metropolis-records.com)