'BAT OUT OF HELL III: THE MONSTER IS LOOSE'

'BAT OUT OF HELL III: THE MONSTER IS LOOSE'
Meat Loaf (Virgin)
Grade: C+
Twenty-nine years after the original "Bat Out of Hell" album -- and 13 years after its sequel -- Meat Loaf returns with the third installment of the franchise.
"Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster is Loose," sees longtime collaborator Jim Steinman contribute seven of the album's 14 songs, including the hit, "It's All Coming Back to Me Now," made famous by Celine Dion. Oddly enough, the 58-year old Meat Loaf not only pulls it off as a strong duet with Marion Raven, but delivers it with bombastic flair that resonates throughout the record.
At times, most of the tracks on the album live up to the dramatic expectation that Meat Loaf fans have come to love, though the Steinman compositions clearly feed the beast. Among them, "Seize the Night," a 10-minute composition that holds its own as one of the stronger tracks within the entire "Bat" universe. Another interesting track, "In the Land of the Pig, the Butcher is King," alludes to what Richard Wagner could do with a rock band.
But Steinman had a smaller role on this record -- partly because of disagreements that led to a lawsuit over the "Bat Out of Hell" name, partly because of reported health problems -- and that's part of the problem. The album lacks the cohesiveness as the previous ones.
While this "Bat Out of Hell III" peaks at times, its still the runt of the bat litter. Ah, but don't be sad, "cause two out of three ain't bad."
-- John Carucci, Associated Press
'PUSSY CATS'
The Walkmen (Record Collection)
Grade: B
Immediately after recording "A Hundred Miles Off" and faced with the imminent closing of their studio, the Walkmen decided, on a lark, to record their own version of Harry Nilsson's 1974 album "Pussy Cats." Produced by John Lennon during his "lost weekend" separation from Yoko Ono, "Pussy Cats" featured half covers, half Nilsson originals, and Nilsson's ruptured vocal cords. It's an odd choice to re-create, but the Walkmen do it well, mimicking both the chaotic party vibe of "Subterranean Homesick Blues" and "Rock Around the Clock" and the expansive production of "All My Life" and "Save the Last Dance for Me."
With help from, among others, Mazarin's Quentin Stoltzfus, the Walkmen eschew the serious melodrama of their own albums in favor of a loose and ramshackle celebration. Like the original, their "Pussy Cats" is a diversion, but a pleasant one.
-- Steve Klinge, Philadelphia Inquirer
'HEARD IT IN A LOVE SONG'
Mark Chesnutt (CBUJ)
Grade: B
No longer a hit-maker on a major Nashville label, Mark Chesnutt is free to pursue his passion for 90-proof honky-tonk. And that's good news -- for country fans, at least. His new album is another reminder of just how good the Texas native is at singing this kind of straight-up country.
"Heard It in a Love Song" takes its title from the old Marshall Tucker hit, which leads off the album. It's probably the weakest song on a set that features several familiar gems, including "Dreaming My Dreams With You," "Apartment 9," and "Lost Highway." Chesnutt gives them all exceptional readings, and his consistently uncompromising approach belies the presence of four producers. Meanwhile, the one (co-written) original here, the clever swing tune "That Good That Bad," suggests the singer should try doing more.
-- Nick Cristiano, Philadelphia Inquirer
'SMALL TOWN GIRL'
Kellie Pickler (BNA)
Grade: B
Unlike previous "American Idol" contestants, Kellie Pickler had a hand in writing five songs on her frisky debut album, and it yields the most honest and personal "Idol" souvenir to date. Pickler faces comparisons with last year's "Idol" Carrie Underwood, but the popular Underwood has no vision, no artistic core. Pickler, like icons Dolly Parton and Reba McEntire, shrewdly allows her small town roots -- her essence -- to shine in the public arena. She also has a more distinctive voice than Underwood.
Not bad for a 20-year-old from Albemarle, N.C., who only finished in sixth place and who endured ribbing for not knowing that the "l" in salmon is silent.
That's not to say "Small Town Girl" is great. Blame hack producer Blake Chancey (Dixie Chicks) who offers no stylistic variation. The similarity in tempos and the push to make Pickler sing at the top of her range leads to listener fatigue.
But when she sings about the mother she never knew on "I Wonder" ("I look in the mirror and all I see/are your brown eyes looking back at me/They're the only thing you ever gave to me at all") Pickler rises above the lousy production, connects with her material and finds a moving emotional core none of the previous Idols have tapped this early on.
-- Howard Cohen, Miami Herald
'THE AUDIENCE'S LISTENING'
Cut Chemist (Warner Bros.)
Grade: A
"The Audience's Listening" is the type of CD that you can press play and just roll with no matter where you are or what you're doing.
The solo debut for Cut Chemist, the veteran turntablist and producer who previously worked with Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli, includes a wide range of styles and flavors. Peppering the music are strains of Brazilian music ("The Garden"), electro stomp ("Storm"), surf music ("(My 1st) Big Break") and more. He can give you a booming beat or a spacey, chilled-out head trip.
As his past work has shown, perhaps nowhere more than in his "Brainfreeze" collaboration with DJ Shadow, Cut Chemist is a skilled manipulator and collagist. And he clearly has a record collection that one could get lost in without a guide. It all comes together in a lushly diverse CD that is aptly named, for Cut Chemist has created one of the more listenable CDs to be released this year.
-- Curt Field, Washington Post