Billy Idol - Devil's Playground

If you like Aerosmith, Shadows Fall, Billy Idol, or good music in general, then you'll love:

Billy Idol - Devil's Playground

OK, we're up to day 4 of my album reviews, and already this is becoming a chore. Why? Because, despite my massive 700+ CD collection (heh heh heh), it's hard to pick an album to review. That's because I don't want to blow a review on something I can honestly say I was more in the mood for one day that I wasn't for another. To add onto that, I'm only now getting a "rep" with this blog, so every review right now is either going to get me new fans, or turn people off.

Today, we are taking on a personal favorite of mine; Billy Idol.

For years, I heard tales of an infamous punk-rocker who took no God-Damn prisoners, sung of "White Weddings" and "Rebel Yells". Tales of a man who wrote songs that drove people nuts, but also had some mass appeal with it all. Tales that indicated that the man was, in fact, a punk rock god. This album finally gave validity to all those claims; Billy Idol had some god-damn balls! I had only bought one album by him before this, and that was Rebel Yell, which disappointed me to no end, and still does. Blasphemy? I don't care, it was not worth my time.

On Devil's Playground, we get the Billy Idol of legends; a furious man who can write songs that will grip you, make you do dirty things, and is unrelenting at times with his music! "Scream" has often been compared to, or considered and update to, "Rebel Yell". Whoever tells you that needs a good kick in the balls, because this is infiently superior a track to that! "Make me scream/ All night/ All night long" indeed! The song offers insane riffage, smooth verses, and a chorus that seals the deal, and that is that "Scream" simply kicks-ass! "Super Overdrive" offers the same furociousness in differnt form, offering up prime material for driving down the highway at 90 MPH.

Of course, it isn't a Billy Idol disc without the classic rockers, right? "Sherri" offers up nice Billy-Approved Rockabilly riffs, while "World Comin' Down" offers a more uptempo affair, perfect for a shit mood. "Yellin' at the Christmas Tree" is just hilarious, while "Romeo's Waiting" offers some damn good lyrics and riffs. "The Lady Do or Die" sounds like it could have been written by Johnny Cash, and the fact that Billy and co. wrote it give it a uniquieness thatt is quite enjoyable. "Rat Race" is a beautiful track, giving you an epic feeling of the world. The album closer, "Summer Running", offers both an nice accoustic guitar part and something that will, and I refuse to give it away, but it will blow your mind.

If there is anything I want people to get out of this review, it's this: This is a damn good Billy Idol album! Scratch that, it's a damn good album PERIOD! It's not perfect, but it's damn near close. I hate seeing people simply pass this album because they don't listen to Billy anymore! This is something that anyone who has liked Billy Idol should get, or anyone who wanted to finally see the man behind the legends of an infamous punk-rocker who took no God-Damn prisoners.

With that, I give this disc a 4.6 out of 5! It is, without question, a triumph of an album.

BUY THIS ALBUM!
Note: As I write this, Amazon.com is selling it for $9.99, so buy the damn thing already!