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Rating: Today I want to talk to you about Meat Loaf.
His real name is Marvin Lee Aday, but by now everyone calls him Meat Loaf. It's likely that you've seen him in some films like The Rocky Horror Show from 1975, based on the musical of the same name, or in the more recent Fight Club (he was the former athlete who got "man boobs" due to steroids). That said, the name Meat Loaf in the music industry is undoubtedly linked to the rock opera Bat Out Of Hell. The first installment sold, I dare say, reasonably well: over 30,000,000 copies (!!!) and the second installment half of that.
I want to talk to you about Bat Out Of Hell III, released last year. However, first, it's good to try to outline the genre: not an easy operation.
The songs of Bat Out Of Hell I and II, entirely composed by Jim Steinman and performed by the powerful voice of Meat Loaf, are exaggerated, pompous, unabashedly baroque, and extremely theatrical. It takes wit to understand that a person who calls himself "meat loaf" (this is, in fact, the Italian translation of meat loaf) in honor of his ungraceful forms is gifted with great self-irony. He does not at all set himself up as the savior of rock, as one might gather by absentmindedly looking at the artwork of the aforementioned works with Harley Davidson flying out of hell. On the covers, as flashy as few are, stands the name of the super rockstar "MEAT LOAF." The parody is thus obvious, both in the exaggerated story of the concept and in the sound where guitars mix with heavy orchestrations, sweet and meticulous melodies, in songs that last an eternity with continuous time changes, obsessive repetitions of the choruses, and the introduction of gospel choirs following.
In truth, this work (brilliant) is a huge mockery of all rock stars and one of the greatest paradoxes of music history. Why? Because it's incredibly defined as a sum of rock opera, when the sounds are hyper-polished, enticing, and meticulously refined with manic professionalism. It's all a matter of self-persuasion: with such artwork and such a story, this record can't help but be damn rock, and people ended up believing it, considering Bat Out Of Hell a sum of the genre. In this regard, I read on this site a review claiming that rock was born with Bat Out Of Hell!!!! An incredible paradox that personally makes me laugh heartily and roll off my chair... In truth, it's an excellent pop with some guitar shreds to muddy the waters. In my opinion, it's necessary to enter this mindset to appreciate these two great records (I adore the first two): many do not.
The first work was released in 1977, the second in 1993, and the latest in 2006.
The cover of Bat Out Of Hell III sees our hero with his indispensable Harley and sword in hand, ready to face the monster and save the damsel in distress. The sounds are, as in the previous chapters, in dichotomous opposition as the entire CD is dotted with a sea of ballads and danceable gallops. But really, can't you see it's a massive joke???
Honestly, this latest effort titled "The Monster Is Loose" in my opinion has no reason to exist. Our Meat is already 60 years old, and he even broke off relations with his "arm" Jim Steinman. The two almost went to court as the composer did not want Meat Loaf to perform his songs for the aforementioned work. In a nutshell, the CD picks up the sounds of the previous installments without, predictably, reaching their heights. Songs like "Blind As A Bat", "Alive" and "Bad For Good" or the already famous "It's All Coming Back To Me Now" (Celine Dion) may appeal very much to newcomers, but they have the flavor of the already heard. A nice CD (with a bunch of guests I don't feel like listing) that ruins a beautiful saga. Fortunately, the "Monster Is Loose"... let's hope it doesn't resurrect, I add.
Tracklist Lyrics and Samples
01 The Monster Is Loose (07:12)
I've been living my life in a cage
Freedom spits in my face
It was such a disgrace
And I was lonely
And feeling empty
Desperate
I had my head in a noose
I had nothing to loose
Had enough of abuse
And now I'm dangerous
Hateful, contagious
It haunts us
I'm angry (I'm angry)
I'm raging (I'm raging)
I'm breaking through the pain
The monster's loose
And now you know the truth
Tell me can you feel it
As you hit the wall
The monsters loose
And now you have to choose
And prove you can take it
To the top before you fall
I've walked a slippery road
Felt a twitch in my soul
Through the wind and the cold
With no protection
Just one direction
Destruction
I've paid for all my mistakes
Taking all I can take
Until I'm ready to break
I'm feeling vicious
And so outrageous
It breaks us
I'm leaving
Still breathing
I'm tearing through these chains
The monster's loose
And as you know the truth
Tell me can you feel it
As you hit the wall
The monster's loose
And now you have to choose
And prove you can take it
To the top and never fall
I've lived a thousand years in darkness
Banished all alone
Inside my mind with just my madness
Behind these walls of stone
I was falling apart at the seams
Holding my breath just to breathe
I tasted the sting of my tears
I was waking up stuck in a dream
Ran out of air, couldn't screamed
Wasted away by my fears
The monster's loose
And now you know the truth
Tell me can you feel it
As you hit the wall
The monster's loose
And now you have to choose
And prove that you can take it
To the top and never fall
The monster's loose
You've lost your last excuse
Now show me that you got it
Even when you fall
The monster's loose
This game is win or loose
Sometimes you gotta' do it
And show the world you want it all
Yeahhhhhhaw
Yeahhhhhhaw
Yeahhhhhhaw
Yeahhhhhhaw
Yeahhhhhhhhhhhaw
06 In the Land of the Pig, the Butcher Is King (05:30)
Look at them now
What do they want?
And what do they do now?
Nothing at all!
What do they know?
What do they think?
And who do they tell?
Well, no one at all!
Lives are truely meaningless
And we are busy being blessed
With that we can take and pocket
No one needs to know
We're the plug and they're the socket
Give us the juice and we'll go
Can't you hear the choir now?
Listen to the animals sing!
Can't you hear the slaughterhouse bells?
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
How do they sleep?
Their lives are so tart
Bring me the trash collectors
'Cause they're nothing but trash
What do you expect?
They've got no standards
So we lower the bar
'Cause they're waiting for us
We'll open up Pandora's Box
Pandora gave her keys and locks
They're the big dogs waiting for their mother
Come to the confessional
So I can tell you all to bugger off
There's no time like now!
Can't you hear the choir now?
Listen to the animals sing!
Can't you hear the slaughterhouse bells?
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
Can't you hear the choir now?
Listen to the market-place sing!
Can't you hear the slaughterhouse bells?
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king...
And we'll do it our way
It's our time to play
We know what to say
They stand in our way
Don't stand in our way
No time like today...
Can't you hear the choir now?
Listen to the anthems we sing!
Can't you hear the slaughterhouse bells?
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
Can't you hear the choir now?
Listen to the animals sing!
Can't you hear the slaughterhouse bells?
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
Can't you hear the choir now?
Listen to the chosen ones sing!
Can't you hear the slaughterhouse bells?
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king!
In the land of the pigs the butcher is king...
07 Monstro (01:38)
Tu eres cruel (monstro)
No eres fiel (monstro)
Hijo del mal (monstro)
Un ser fatal (monstro)
Tu corazon (monstro)
Es un ladron (monstro)
08 Alive (04:22)
I'm still alive
Must have been a miracle
It's been a hell of ride
Destination still unknown
It's a fact of life:
If you make one wrong move with the gun to your head
You better walk the line or you'll be left for dead
I'm a runaway train on a broken track
I'm a ticker on the bomb that you can't turn back this time
That's right
I got away with it all and I'm still alive
Let the end of the world come tumbling down
I'll be the last man standing on the ground
As long as hot blood runs trough my veins
I'm still alive
Lost in the night
Feeling so invisible
Oh, a dead man walking the wire
High above the devil's net
That's made of fire
And it's a long way down from the top of the world
You better look around or you gonna get burned
I'm a runaway train on a broken track
I'm a ticker on the bomb that you can't turn back this time
That's right
I got away with it all and I'm still alive
Let the end of the world come tumbling down
I'll be the last man standing on the ground
And as the dust clears, look in my eyes
I'm still alive
I'm still alive
The darkest night ain't black enough
To keep the morning light from shining
The highest wall ain't tall enough
To keep the smallest man from climbing
The more that you resist the tide
The more it pulls you in
The more you hang on for your life
(I'm a runaway train on a broken track)
(I'm a ticker on the bomb that you can't turn back this time)
(That's right)
That's right
I got away with it all and I'm still alive
I'm a runaway train on a broken track
I'm a ticker on the bomb that you can't turn back this time
That's right
I got away with it all and I'm still alive
Let the end of the world come tumbling down
I'll be the last man standing on the ground
And if my shadow's all that survives
I'm still alive
I'm still alive...
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