Are we ready for the return of Kid Rock?
Jul 30, 2007, 01:54 PM | by Shirley Halperin
Categories: Music
Brace yourselves, PopWatchers. Kid Rock is back with a new album, his first in four years, and it's sure to raise some eyebrows.
EW was treated to an intimate listening session at Rock's Malibu home last week. An invitation we really couldn't refuse, especially when paired with dinner at Malibu staple Taverna Tony's. (The Greek restaurant is a favorite of Jennifer Aniston's and now I understand why: the tzatziki was fantastic!) It had the makings of one of those rare Hollywood nights that, for a former New Yorker like me, justifies moving out west in the first place. And sure enough, five beers (for Rock) and two cosmos (pour moi) later, I found myself riding shotgun in Rock's classic American-made 1967 convertible something-or-other, roaring on down the Pacific Coast Highway like a scene out of Entourage.
Upon arrival at Rock's manse by the sea, he proudly told an audience of six (myself, fellow EW writer Chris Willman, and a few influential TV bookers) that this record, tentatively titled Rock-n-Roll Jesus, is his best yet. Then the artist formerly known as Bob Ritchie lit a cigar and let it rip, kicking off with the title track, an unabashed, AC/DC-informed rocker befitting the self-anointed American Badass. But as we soon found out, these hard-driving riffs and fiery choruses were just a warm-up. The strip-club-ready "So Hot," Rock's chosen first single, turned out to be the album's unapologetic, sex-fueled tipping point. It's all meant to remind the music-buying public that this is the guy who had to balls to go from middle-finger-waving rap-metal superstar to country crossover success in just over five years, while at the same time selling around 20 million albums. Not too shabby.
And true to the more sensitive side of Rock (I sure did love that "Picture" song), the album features a ballad, a bluesy ode to Fats Domino and "going down to New Orleans" (which, Rock was quick to point out, could double as a metaphor for oral sex) and a God-loving anthem called "Amen." To everyone's surprise, including maybe his own, Rock's singing skills have definitely improved, resulting in only one rap-heavy song. But his bitterness towards ex-wife Pamela Anderson certainly hasn't, as was painfully obvious with the last track and its twangy refrain: "She's half your age, and twice as hot." Ouch.
So what do you think of the return of Kid Rock, PopWatchers? Can he genre-hop his way to relevance in the year 2007? Discuss.
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