01. Here Come The Infidels
02. Rape Whistle
02. Rape Whistle
03. Charles Bronson
04. The Business Of Hate
05. Verbal Combat
06. Destroyer
07. Worst Person On Earth
08. Fire Me
09. I Am Legion
10. Tambourine
11. Blasphemy
I've been waiting for this album for a long time. Stuck Mojo was one of my favourite bands when I was a kid. I've seen them numerous times, both with Bonz fronting the band (I'm pretty sure the first time was when they supported Type O Negative on the Pigwalk tour), and with Lord Nelson (who replaced Bonz just in time to appear on Southern Born Killers). My understanding is that the original lead singer Bonz and guitarist/main songwriter Rich Ward just can't get on. They reunite. They break up..and repeat. Now it looks like the divorce is permanent. Bonz has his own band, and Rich Ward has the Stuck Mojo brand, and has presented the world with a new line-up and this album.
The acceptance of this new Stuck Mojo by lifelong fans
such as myself will be their biggest hurdle. Everything they do from now will be
compared to the classic line-up which was hugely influential on the rap-metal
scene worldwide. How can you compete with your own legacy, when it is as
historically significant as Stuck Mojo's, especially in a time where rap metal
is out of fashion and constantly berated in the press? Couple that with
replacing a legendary front-man with an unknown rapper who looks like he wasn't even
born when the Mojo first started 'snappin' necks'. It all sounds like a recipe for disaster.
Drama and history aside, there's one thing you just can't argue with. A killer
album, and that's exactly what we have here.
Here Come The Infidels is a pretty straight forward, no
bullshit Rap-Metal album. With legendary producer Andy Sneap at the helm, there
are no country covers or anything to send the album on a tangent, just the full on Stuck Mojo sound
that made me love the band in the first place. New rapper Robby J is a great
fit for the band and delivers his vocals with the savage precision and vitriol
that Stuck Mojo have always been known for. Frank Fontsere is still the
drummer, and as expected is still a grooving powerhouse and the backbone of the
band. Rich Ward is clearly still one of the best guitar players and song
writers in the scene. You can hear the revitalised energy through the speakers.
It's obvious that the band are having fun again, and are going at full
throttle, making this the most passionate sounding Stuck Mojo album in a very
long time.
The album is strong throughout and musically stands up to
any other album in their back catalogue. My personal favourites are the
vigilante inspired Charles Bronson, Verbal Combat, and Destroyer, the
latter being one of the best songs they've ever released.
What I love about this record isn't just the return to
the classic sound, but that it's a rebirth. Stuck Mojo deserves more than to be
a nostalgia act. Here Come The Infidels shows that they still have a lot to
offer, and I really hope we don't have to wait several more years for a follow
up.
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