Limp Bizkit
made their reputation through hard work, touring the hell out of their debut album
Three Dollar Bill Y'All
and thereby elevating themselves to the popularity status of their similarly rap-inflected, alt-metal mentors
Korn
. With their second album,
Significant Other
, they come close to reaching
's artistic level; at the very least, it's considerably more ambitious and multi-dimensional than
Three Dollar Bill
.
, of course, hasn't abandoned their testosterone-overloaded signature sound, they've just built around it. There are flourishes of neo-psychedelia on pummeling metal numbers and there are swirls of strings, even crooning, at the most unexpected background. All of it simply enhances the force of their rap-metal attack, which can get a little tedious if it's unadorned. Not so coincidentally, the enlarged sonic palette also serves as emotional coloring for
Fred Durst
's lyrics. He broke up with his longtime girlfriend -- his
, if you will -- during the writing of the album, and his anguish is apparent throughout the record, as almost every song is infused with the guilt, anger, and regret that was churned up in the wake of separation. That, however, gives the impression that this is an alt-metal
Blood on the Tracks
. It's not. Nevertheless, it does have more emotional weight than
, along with more effective, adventurous music. More importantly, it balances these new concerns with trace elements of their juvenile humor along with the overpowering aggro rap-metal that is their stock in trade. Which makes it a rare artistic leap forward that will still please audiences that just want more of the same. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine