Beat Me

Electric Eel Shock's second full-length Beat Me features a little less manic strut than their 2004 debut (called Go Europe! or Go USA! depending on what side of the pond you're on), but given just how much cranked-up attitude that platter contained, that still leaves plenty of room for disc number two to make with the rock. And make with the rock it does; Beat Me still features plenty of fractured but meaty riffage from Aki Morimoto, relentless rhythms from Kazuto Maekawa and Tomoharu "Gian" Ito, and songs that chart the history of hard rock from blues-rock and boogie to glam and metal, coupled with stupid/brilliant lyrics summed up in such song titles as "I Can Hear the Sex Noise," "I Love Fish but Fish Hate Me" and "Don't Say F**k." As on their first album, Electric Eel Shock sound like they're a goof on some level, but a goof from guys who love their rock & roll big and loud and insist on playing it right, not unlike the Dictators. And while the Dictators an inarguably a better band, Electric Eel Shock have taken what could have been a joke band and turned it into something that kicks very hard and consistently delivers the goods — track nine of Beat Me is called "Rock and Roll Kills the Blues," and your blues will doubtless be running for their life once you slap this into your stereo. And for a grand finale, they offer up a cover of "Iron Man" that actually has a personality of its own, no small achievement.