Lordi
To Beast or Not to Beast

I'll be honest, the first time I saw Lordi on Google, I thought they were a death metal band. Upon listening, however, they were a total surprise. The first song I heard was "Hard Rock Hallelujah" and I thought I was in front of a B movie horror with five guys dressed as monsters that somehow reminded me of Manowar, so faithful to their sound and themes, only to end up getting stuck in the same songs. However, many years after that "Get Heavy," Lordi returned in 2013 with "To Beast or not to Beast," an album that marks a new maturity from the "monsters," a maturity that had been perfectly highlighted in "The Arockalypse." I dare anyone not to have heard "The Riff" more than once, and especially not to see the video (hehe...) As the frontman, Mr. Lordi, said, the video for "The Riff" was initially supposed to show the woman completely naked, but the producers advised against it. "You can show a guy eating a human brain, but you can't show a nipple." Well, certainly an interesting question to ponder! "I'm the Best," "We're not Bad for the Kids" are authentic bombs, perfectly sung by that raspy and hard voice of Mr. Lordi, which somehow reminds me of Blackie Lawless. "Horrifiction" and "Candy for the Cannibal" are engaging tracks, which could be fun live, but after all, which Lordi track isn't fun? It concludes with "Sincerely with Love," which could easily be dedicated to the poser of the moment, the partner you just argued with, your employer, or someone else. After having them listen to it, of course, eat their brain, because... if something is to be done, it must be done well.

What to say, Lordi may seem boring, repetitive, but they do it damn well, and most importantly, with fun. To hell with those progressive albums with tracks longer than 20 minutes! (Pink Floyd fans, don't kill me), these monsters know how to whip up a good album, and they've proven it.

Until next time, and happy Easter!