The return of Iggy and the Stooges is something that does not go by unnoticed. With the release of their first album since 1973 “The Weirdness” is an album that brings back the early days of punk in its most raw fashion.
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Iggy and The Stooges
|  Entertainment
Art
"The Weirdness"
(Virgin)
Released March 6, 2007
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In the past few months we have seen the reunions of some rather big name bands in the business, near super groups such as Genesis and The Police have begun scheduling their triumphant return. When it was announced that The Stooges would be following suit it seemed only a select group seemed to know about it. Iggy Pop has never been about pleasing the masses.
From the first track on the album the Stooges get right to business and launch into a head-banging track entitled “Trollin’”. The lyrics themselves seem self-reflective as Iggy addresses the reunion of his band by saying within the lyrics “rock critics wouldn’t like this at all/the fans are going to ride my balls”. The entire song seems subtly dedicated to reestablishing The Stooges as the anti-pop music poster boys.
A raw energy emanates from the entire album proving once again why The Stooges are so legendary. Many Stooges fans will find themselves making comparisons to earlier albums, but the style and rock of “The Weirdness” is all its own. Iggy Pop has always had his own unique style and that has evolved greatly in the past 33 years.
At almost halfway through the album the title track “The Weirdness” breaks up the hard and fast rock n’ roll with a slightly slower song to calm the listener down before getting back to the fast beats of all the other tracks.
“Free & Freaky” is one of the only songs I felt was a little out of place. It retained all the classic elements of Iggy Pop that make him great, but it just felt a little dated. The repeated chorus of “Free and Freaky in the USA” seemed like a call back to the music of the early 70’s. To be fair even a mediocre Iggy Pop song is usually better then the best generic mainstream punk bands of today.
“Mexican Guy” is Iggy Pop at his all time best. The lyrics just scream with rebelliousness while the guitar solos played by Ron Asheton will, in the words of Jack Black, “Melt your face”.
If you are one of those people that only goes out and buys one or two albums a year this is the album you want to get. Most of the lyrics will probably need to be censored for radio play so if you want to hear the real Iggy Pop you are going to have to check out the album itself.
This is by far one of the most anticipated albums of 2007 and The Stooges deliver with full force. Now that the Stooges have returned let’s hope that they continue making such influential albums for years to come. Age hasn’t touched these legends; they can still rock out with the best of the best.
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