Well, it finally happened. All throughout this series I've had albums that I wasn't huge on (Subterranean Jungle) and albums that I loved more than I thought I would (Too Tough To Die), but I haven't outright disliked anything... enter Animal Boy. Now before I continue I have to clarify; I don't hate this album, but it is the one Ramones album thus far that I haven't wanted to dive right back into after first listening to. Does that mean it is completely devoid of anything worthwhile? No. In fact, the few highlights here are really great, it's just that the vast majority of tracks here are utterly forgettable.
The album opens decently with the odd, synth-laden "Somebody Put Something In My Drink" which features a really gruff performance from Joey, like so gruff it's actually kind of hard to take seriously.
The title track is pretty run of the mill Ramones, which became unacceptable four albums ago and the song "Apeman Hop" is solid, but I can't help but shake my head at the intro 'apeman' gibberish and hokey lyrics. I know, Ramones aren't a poetic tour de force, but coming off of the politically minded tracks from Too Tough To Die, I can't help but feel like "Animal Boy" is simply phoned in.
We also get another Dee Dee hardcore punk nod with "Eat The Rat", though this one is pretty passable overall. But Dee Dee does manage to bring one of my favorite tracks to the table with "Love Kills", a song about the death of his friends Sid and Nancy; Sid, you may know, was the bassist for the Sex Pistols. And this ode is not only a great punk tune, but it also delves into the dangers of heroine (a drug that Dee Dee was very familiar with) but it is also a pretty great tribute as well.
However, my undisputed favorite track on Animal Boy is "Bonzo Goes To Birburg", a scathing song about Ronald Regan that just so happens to also feature the best, most consistent riff and melody on the entire album- bar none.
The rest of the album either meanders through familiar chord progressions that have become incredibly tired at this point, or are drenched in so many cheesy synths that I can't help but completely tune out ("She Belongs To Me", "Something To Believe In"). Don't get me wrong, I do realize that "Howling At The Moon" had a very prominent synth, but that song actually had a good hook to back it up, and the production, courtesy of Tommy Ramone, brought out the best qualities that the band has.
As it stands, Animal boy is a mediocre album from a band that, in my opinion, rarely ever put out iffy material; sure there's a "I Don't Care" here and there, but at least that track was less than two minutes.
5.5/10
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