Although this isn't as bad as America's Sweetheart [Courtney Love], the solo debut from former Smashing Pumpkins and Hole bassist Melissa Auf der Maur still leaves much to be desired. Even a wealth of assistance from QOTSA collaborators Josh Homme, Nick Oliveri, and Mark Lanegan can't save MAdM from producing the umpteenth cookie cutter Rock album of the year. You can barely hear their presence at all, and if it weren't for the liner notes, I may have never known they were there. Although it is a dark and grungy effort right from the first chord, there's a strong Nickelback vibe in the songwriting, construction, and production, aside from the T.A.T.U. does metal of "Taste You" and the Cranberries without all that Gaelic stuff of "Would If I Could." It's not that it's really overdone, just already done.
The most unsettling detail of this product is surely the presence of every cliché Rock pose ever posed captured stylishly between a few suggestive, "kinda wish I was a more respectable and artistic Courtney Love" style photos [I heard her father got her into photography at a young age]. For only the price of a new release, you can own a veritable how-to guide for the optimistic Rock bassist in you who is hoping to break into the mainstream, sell-out as quickly as possible, and look sharp doing it. Imagine your embarrassment getting on stage and not knowing how to hold your Gibson like a penis. What would your mindless teenage fans gawk at and imitate then? Your world issues or philosophies? They're not even listening to you!
Auf der Maur's far and away highlight is the grim lounge tune "Overpower Thee," which creates more atmosphere with its understated piano and vocal arrangement than all the screaming and jamming anyone else made here; but even then MAdM closes the track by forcing her voice to give out in an effort to simulate emotions that simply aren't there, effectively negating any positive steps achieved earlier on in the track. Ignoring the most pointless bonus track in the history of skip-three-minutes-past-the-last-song bonus tracks, which features an elderly woman yodeling off-key on a scratchy four track, this is not really bad. If anything, it's nothing: a dark, expensive, teenager programmed, radio-friendly, MTV-destined nothing. Steer reasonably clear of this mess, I beseech you.
1. Lightning Is My Girl
2. Followed The Waves
3. Real A Lie
4. Head Unbound
5. Taste You
6. Beast Of Honor
7. I'll Be Anything You Want
8. My Foggy Notion
9. Would If I Could
10. Overpower Thee
11. Skin Receiver
12. I Need I Want I Will
More about: Auf der Maur
