Methods of Mayhem - Methods of Mayhem

As far as the notion of the caveat emptor goes, it's hard to beat what's imprinted right on the Methods of Mayhem CD. "Warning: this CD is nothing but worthless plastic unless played loud as f**k...." OK then. Scenario: Tommy Lee, tattooed wife-slapping bad boy, dives headfirst into the not-so-brave or new world of white-rap road rage and comes up with a pretty smoking CD--even with the volume not cranked up to 11. Joining forces with Lil' Kim, Kid Rock, Mix Master Mike, and obnoxious poseur Fred Durst, Lee kicks out the jams with a thundering hammer-of-the-B-boy-gods glee. With tracks like "Crash" and the skittery assault of "Hypocritical," Methods of Mayhem is loud, snotty, and kinda cool. Even for those of us way too damn old and female to actually play the thing around the house. --Amy Linden Amazon.com

ok CD

there about 3 songs that I really like, but had to buy the CD to get them. They have no songs on iTunes, and that sucks July 7, 2007

This is....unbelievable!

This entire album is just amazing! Who would have thought Tommy Lee would put together such awesome music. The sound is orginal and very well thought of. I recommend this album to anyone who appreciates good music. Buy it! March 8, 2005

MOM is not for your mother... just the way we like it

The opening line of "Serve The Servants" on Nirvana's In Utero read: 'teenage angst has paid off well / now I'm bored and old'. What that line did is set the foundation of vulnerability and pain which that entire album possessed. Now, although Tommy Lee is no Cobain, he knows how to make a point. Here, "Who The Hell Cares" starts with: 'this is the operator with a collect call from the LA county jail from Tommy / will you accept the charges?'. So although the two quotes have nothing in common, they work in essentially the same respects. This album is Tommy Lee's way of releasing his anger and disgust towards the press; it also covers his sexual side, his problems with drugs, and the paparazzi. But aside from the lyrical value of this disc, the music is just plain awesome. It's great driving music or equally as good for periods of anger and/or when you want something non-stop and in-your-face.

The two main highlights here are "Get Naked" and "Anger Management". On "Get Naked", it's just so funny to hear what lingo Tommy Lee uses (if I printed it here, they'd ... it out). How they ever made an edited version of it is beyond me. The guest appearances by Lil' Kim, Fred Durst, George Clinton, and Mix Master Mike also add appeal. The title for "Anger Management" pretty much speaks for itself. The line 'people ask me for answers as if I was a pope' is quite fitting. The other single, "New Skin", is decent, but sounds a lot like NIN's "Closer" and the appearance by Kid Rock was somewhat ill-timed. "Hypocritical" is a decent song, though it's hard to make out what they're saying. It doesn't quite outdo its predecessor, "Who The Hell Cares". After the opening, the guitar work hooks you and everything flows perfectly in and out of the chorus. "Crash" is another obvious track. It starts: 'here's some music to crash your car to'. If there's a better driving song out there, I'd like to know. Believe it or not, "Metamorphosis" might actually be the best song on the album. It's a bit more tame, and every time TiLo jumps in with 'times are changing...' one can't help but (want to) sing along. The only truly bad song on MOM is "Proposition Fxck You", which is a straight-up rap song. If you don't like rap, you won't like it (or vice versa). "Mr. Onsomeothershxts" is a pointless, 38-second track from Wu Tang member U-God. Finally, you have "Narcotic" and "Spun". Both of them are more of techno-rock and just act as what resulted from Tommy messing around on turntables and whatnot. "Narcotic" has a few good tidbits of Tommy's life ('forget about rehab') thrown in, whereas "Spun" is more of a basic techno tune.

Overall, this album has five unbelievably excellent songs (tracks 1, 3, 4, 7, 8). "Hypocritical" and "New Skin" are good as well, just not as good. And the remaining four tracks take a few listens for toleration. Although MOM came into the world at rock-meets-rap's musical peak, their music serves it purpose. It's fast, hard, unclothed-and-loving-it FU metal for the car, and NOT your parents. And, believe it or not, underneath Tommy Lee and TiLo's extremely volatile exterior sound, there are decent, respectable lyrics to be had. Like it says on the actual disc: '...take this shxt straight to you head - because after all, it's quiet when your dead'. September 11, 2003

Dope production and that's about it

Famed Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee decided to form Methods Of Mayhem as an outlet for his interest in the emerging (at the time) rap/rock craze. Although it's hard to tell who else is in the group besides him and Tilo, they do make pretty good music.

I have to admit that Tommy is a better lyricist than I originally thought, although he still isn't the best. The problem with the songs on here is that they don't really make a lot of sense. "Metamorphosis" is pointless, and "Get Naked", despite being very energetic, is a little too gimmicky (you can only milk the sex tape thing for so long). And another thing, a lot of these songs have weak choruses, especially "Who The Hell Cares", where the chorus simply goes: "Who the hell cares/Where the F you come from." They took the words right out of my mouth.

And the guest stars don't really shine either. Snoop Dogg seems distracted on "Who The Hell Cares" because he's not rapping on any kind of tempo, while "Mr. Onsomeothers**ts" is a generic interlude from U-God, of all people. And while things look promising on "New Skin", Kid Rock drops in to talk about the same stuff he always talks about -- how he's been around for ten years and that he mixes rap with rock.

The music on this album is more than good, and if this were simply an instrumental album, it would have easily gotten five stars. But Tommy and Tilo should polish their lyrics a little -- that, or polish the wordplay. March 21, 2003

It would be funnier if this album was meant to be a joke

Before Tommy Lee jumped on the post grunge sensitive rock bandwagon of today with "Never A Dull Moment", he released this album of his new "band" after he quit Motley Crue in 1999 when rap-metal/nu-metal was the "happenin' thang" (or something among those lines). Methods of Mayhem consists of Lee playing a variety of instruments and attempting to rap (hearing him talk like a thug in interviews ticks me off so bad, he couls talk like a normal person any other time, now he's just trying to cash in on whatever fad is in, and that really gets to me considering this is the guy who made me want to drum) along with numerous guest spots from Lil' Kim, Kid Rock, Fred Durst, and anyone else whose spotlight has since dimmed. The songs are repetitive, dull, boring, and honestly stupid and don't offer any kind of substance or showcase any of the talent that we all know Lee really possesses. All in all, Methods of Mayhem is undoubtadly one of the worst albums I have ever had the displeasure of hearing, and this just goes to show you that no matter what may be "in" at the time, you shouldn't quit your day job. March 21, 2003

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