Meatmen: COVER THE EARTH

Well, it took almost 30 years, but The Meatmen have finally recorded a decent album. As you probably guessed, Cover The Earth is a full-length featuring covers, hence the tile (duh). Besides having the best lineup since their early seven-inches, what makes this album work is that most of the tracks are of the rock'n'roll vein. Standouts include GG Allins' "Highest Power", Jimmy Dean's "Big Bad John" and ABBA's "So Long". And there's a little variety here with the funkish "Psychedelic Shack" and the country-fied "We Didn't Kill Each Other (But Didn't We Try)". Sadly, though, what holds this album back from being great are the sophomoric comedic skits, courtesy of vocalist Tesco Vee, and too many songs -- 24 tunes clocking in at an hour. Still, well worth checking out.

Rating: 4 outta 5 stars