Blah... Blah... Blah... Love Songs...

Album Review

When former Rob Zombie guitarist Riggs starts a project of his own, one expects a strong White Zombie influence. Riggs, after all, spent six years in Rob Zombie's employ, and the influence was bound to rub off — which is exactly what happens on Blah...Blah...Blah...Love Songs for the New Millennium. This is the first album by Scum of the Earth, an outfit that includes not only Riggs (lead vocals, guitar), but also, Powerman 5000 guitarist Mike Tempesta (the brother of Zombie drummer John Tempesta). Not surprisingly, the Rob Zombie influence is quite strong on this CD, which favors the sort of rhythmic, industrialized electro-metal that Riggs' former employer is known for. But if Blah...Blah...Blah is less than groundbreaking, it is never dull or uninspired — quite the contrary. Rob Zombie taught Riggs well, and none of Scum of the Earth's material fails to be hooky and infectious. Unlike so many of the post-‘80s alternative metallers whose lyrics are totally introspective, Zombie has brought a sense of campy, over-the-top fun to the table — and the dark-humored mixture of horror, sex, sleaze and decadence that one expects from Zombie (or, for that matter, the Electric Hellfire Club) is also a main ingredient of Blah...Blah...Blah. Notice that certain words keep coming up when Zombie and Riggs are discussed — words like humorous, fun and entertaining. Riggs, like Zombie, realizes that in a post-‘80s, post-Nevermind rock world, humor and campy fun are not illegal; there is no law stating that post-‘80s rock has to be ultra-serious-minded 100 percent of the time. Blah...Blah...Blah doesn't point alternative metal in any new directions, but in terms of infectiousness and sheer entertainment value, Scum of the Earth's first album is a success.