News flash for all you alt-rock fanatics out there: Morrissey has given in, and he appears to be enjoying himself - at least somewhat.
"There are explosive kegs/Between my legs," he sings on "Dear God Please Help Me," the second track on his latest LP.
Come again? Morrissey - the man who has lived in celibacy for the last two decades - getting sexual?
"Now I'm spreadi ng your legs/With mine in between," he croons a few lines later.
Yep, Mozzer seems to be getting lucky these days.
That revelation is the most shocking thing about Ringleader Of The Tormentors - his eighth solo album and arguably the most emotionally naked of his career.
Instead of his usual laments about the miserable and most depressing aspects of life, the lord of tortured souls turns his attention to love, death - and yes, sex. It's an interesting dichotomy, resulting in songs as topically varied as "The Father Who Must Be Killed" and "I Want To See The Boy Happy."
Of course, even when he genuinely seems to be satisfied - even hopeful - his trademark mope peers through: "Living longer than I had intended/Something must have gone right," he quips in the otherwise pleasant "In The Future When All's Well."
Musically, the album - recorded in Rome with legendary glam producer Tony Viscotti (David Bowie, T. Rex) - is much crunchier and more riff-heavy than his last record, 2004's excellent You Are The Quarry. It's a bit rough around the edges and not as instantly catchy as Quarry, but the songs grow on you.
Not to mention, guest orchestration from iconic film composer Enrico Morricone and background vocals from a children's choir are interesting touches.
Fittingly, the album ends with a little of both - on a bombastic, optimistic track called "At Last I Am Born." "I once was a mess of guilt because of the flesh/It's remarkable what you can learn," he sings toward the end of the song.
A little bed-thumping will do that to you.
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