Pop Music Review : Body Count Milks a Dead Genre in Glam Slam Show

One thing came across loud and clear on Monday night at Glam Slam during the set by Body Count, the rap/metal band fronted by L.A. rapper Ice-T: It’s time to pull the plug on this genre. The novelty has worn off.

The main problem with the genre is that it pairs rap, in which lyrics are crucial, with metal, where lyrics are a distant second to instrumental din.

At Glam Slam, Ice-T shrieked over his four bandmates’ screeching speed-metal riffs. He was ranting about assorted urban miseries, but you could hardly hear a word he was saying over the roar of the guitars. The show seemed pointless, except to the mosh-pit maniacs who were reacting to the rage inherent in speed-metal music.

The genre would probably have faded long ago if it hadn’t been for Body Count’s “Cop Killer” in 1992. The headlines generated by that controversial track also generated album sales, and definitely extended the style’s life.

But Body Count came crashing back to reality this year with its second album, “Born Dead”--which was just about dead on arrival when it hit the stores. The genre should be buried along with it.