NNNNEEEEARRRGGGGHHH! UHHHHH! NNYEEYYYAH! GRUNT! BLLOOOOOZZZE EXXPLOSHHHUN! COME ON! Yep, it's Blues Explosion time again. For years Jon Spencer has flown in the face of fashion with his manifesto of back-to-basics Blooze (sic) and Rock'N'Roll.
But, since he surfaced last with the magnificent genre busting, hip hop-infused 'ACME' the Blooze is suddenly in vogue having been dusted down and painted with White Stripes. The perfect time then for the Godfather to return in trailblazing form and reclaim his throne from the young upstarts who've stolen his thunder.
For the opening three-minute boogie blast of 'Sweet N Sour' it sounds like he might, but when followed by underwhelming single 'She Said' its clear he's not firing on all cylinders. 'Killer Wolf' and 'The Midnight Creep' are mere fillers only worthy of inclusion on a B-Sides collection and 'Mother Heart' is just plain old weak.
It's by no means a bad album, just not his best by a long way, or the triumphant return it should have been. The gut wrenching power that fuelled 'Now I Got Worry' or eclecticism that punctuated ACME are a little thin on the ground aside from the low-down and dirty double whammy of 'Down In The Beast' and 'Shakin' Rock'N'Roll Tonight'.
Now that someone else has brought his beloved Blooze to a wider audience Jon Spencer seems content to inhabit a world of cult acclaim and nothing more. There's no doubt that a fire still burns in his belly but for now at least it isn't raging quite as it should.
