Ask heavy metal detractors what rubs them the wrong way the most about the genre, and one possible reason could be that, more often than not, metallists take themselves way too seriously. But that can't be said about
Children of Bodom, who have showed their lighter side when it comes to their knack for selecting cover tunes over the years (
Britney Spears,
Kenny Rogers, etc.). And on their 2011 release,
Relentless, Reckless Forever, those who purchase the digital version will be "treated" to a reading of
Eddie Murphy's '80s cheese classic "Party All the Time." Elsewhere throughout
Relentless, Reckless Forever, you'll endure a blitzkrieg of vicious yet tricky guitar riffs and solos, while "singer"
Alexi Laiho knows only two ways to deliver a vocal line -- growl and/or shout. But it's not all pedal to the metal from beginning to end, at least from a musical standpoint -- for every ferocious rocker (the album-opening "Not My Funeral") there is a breather ("Roundtrip to Hell and Back"). And there are tunes that lie somewhere between these two aforementioned approaches, most obviously being the album's leadoff single/video, "Was It Worth It?" And as evidenced by the album's title track, the band has a slight goth edge to its attack, thanks to the keyboard work of
Janne Wirman. As with many modern-day metallists, these Finnish lads come up with some rather fitting song titles for the accompanying musical ferocity -- "Shovel Knockout" being the best of the bunch. Front to back,
Relentless, Reckless Forever is probably the most consistent
Children of Bodom release yet. ~ Greg Prato