Heavy Metal Ketchup # 2

Bigelf, Cheat the Gallows (Custard): Fourth-or-so longplayer by ornate and late-Beatles-obsessed L.A. artsy-fartsy metal band. Pretty good; I kinda liked their previous one, Hex, too. Stuff I'm hearing, in order: circus music welcoming you to the show, Easy Action-era Alice Cooper ("Gravest Show on Earth"); horns ("Blackball"); weird Spanish crosstalk ("Money, It's Pure Evil"); sections that I wish rocked out more ("No Parachute"); Enuff Z'Nuff, King's X ("The Game"); the straighter end of glam rock ("Superstar"); Pink Floyd with bigger guitars ("Race With Time"); early Sabbath if they pranced in fancy pants ("Hydra"); outlandishly interminable and ridiculous multiple-climaxing two-part closing extravaganza that takes in pretty much all of the influences listed above and then some including plenty of Queen and maybe some Sparks and even Sensational Alex Harvey Band ("Counting Sheep" and the seemingly hidden-on-CD "Demon Queen of Spiders"). Plus, the singer wears a top hat. And Linda Perry sings backup vocals in two songs.

Black Stone Cherry, Folklore and Superstition (Roadrunner): I remember people talking about how the last song or two on these Louisianans' first album boogied legitimately Southern, but I never quite bought it. I do realize that the drummer's dad and uncle are Kentucky Headhunters, but I mostly heard post-Creed constipation regardless, and still do. I guess "Please Come In" might split the difference between Nickelback and Black Crowes, if that sounds exciting. And "Ghost of Floyd Collins" is clearly some spooky sort of "Uncle Tom's Cabin"/"Legend of Wooley Swamp"-type mystery. So, that's something.

Blessed By a Broken Heart, Pedal to the Metal (Century Media): Amidst way too much wrestler-wretching good-cop/bad-cop screamo crapola, Montreal kids come up with two authentically anthemic and astoundingly catchy slices of Night Ranger/Europe-type summer Top Gun mall-rock: one ("To Be Young") that starts like "Sweet Child O' Mine," one ("Ride Into the Night") with Naked Raygun woagh woagh woaghs. Dudes -- do a whole album of that kinda stuff next time! I'll love you forever. Or at least for a year.

Blood Ceremony, Blood Ceremony (Rise Above): More Canadians! Toronto this time, though, and they mix up Sabbath riffs, Jethro Tull flutes, Uriah Heep organs and Grace Slick vocals reciting witchcraft incantations, thereby conjuring suburban myths of acid-rock black masses in scary culdesac basements at the moment that hippies started turning Satanic -- brilliant idea; how come nobody thought of it before? Plus, beautiful Renaissance Faire parts ("A Wine Of Wizardry"), jazz fusion sections with "Tainted Love" basslines ("Hop Toad" not "Return to Forever" oddly enough) and simmering instrumental jams stirring eye of newt and wart of crone and board of Ouija into the brew ("Hymn to Pan"). Hey babe, my coven or yours?