Now now, the title isn’t a hot take in the JAR, it’s actually what they called the album. Limp Bizkit hasn’t really been the most serious band (shock I know), so this is on brand. But is it any good?

Unless you’re 12, you know who Limp Bizkit is. They were very big in the late 90s and early 00s in that Nu Metal/Rap Rock genre that got popular (think Korn, Rage Against the Machine, Crazy Town, etc…). It’s been 21 years since Chocolate Covered Starfish in Hotdog Flavored Water and 10 years since their last album Gold Cobra. The original line up is back, this album apparently went through a few iterations of development hell, but instead of jockeying their fans around any longer, they released this album fully digital (to my knowledge).

So do they still suck? Have they recaptured any of the magic they made them a household name?

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – JULY 31: Sam Rivers, Wes Borland, DJ Lethal and Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit backstage at Lollapalooza 2021 at Grant Park on July 31, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)

• Artist: Limp Bizkit
• Album: Still Sucks (2021)
• Label: Suretone Records
• Total Track Time: 32:01

Out of Style starts with a bit of an evangelical sermon and a slow build before the drop D and the classic Limp aspects punch you in the mouth. We already get a little bit of the tongue in cheek humor this album was built around and Limp was known for. The lyrics feel more like stream of consciousness, the beat is a little sparse with the breakdowns being very Nu Metal style. Which I suppose is out of style in 2021? It’s a very self-aware song so I appreciate it for what it is. “It’s time to rock this motherfu- cause I’m always out of style, but my style is kinda fresh”, it’s contradictory and hilarious all in a few words. Dirty Rotten Bizkit this has a bit more of the classic sound with a lot of guitar slides, consistent drum beats and just a good song to jump in the mosh pit to. This won’t win any awards for lyrics or artistry, but it’s a great pit song, even with a cool down spot so the pit could circle before culminating in one more big collision of bodies.

Dad Vibes was the single from this song, and I heard a snippet on the radio a few weeks ago and it’s just perfect. This gives me like vibes of a dad version of Counterfeit. It’s got such a relaxed beat, and they even incorporate “La De Da” as the final portion of the chorus, and it just really works and makes for the moment when everyone would sing along. Don’t believe me? What are the words to Sweet Caroline? No…”Bum Bum Bum” are not lyrics. So see…my point. This is a chill song with an accurate title. Turn It Up, Bitch starts off like Cypress Hill and then the whole song is running down themselves being old and out of touch. Hell Fred Durst and Jonathan Davis did a whole song called All in the Family where they just ran down each other’s bands for fun. While the song itself doesn’t really go anywhere, it amuses me and moves the album along well enough. Don’t Change takes us into more of a ballad. Which I think this is a cover of the INXS song (stops to Google), ahh it is! Which checks out since they have done covers in the past, George Michael’s Faith, but most notably Behind Blue Eyes by The Who. They did well with this, and do very well with this. It’s vulnerable, it doesn’t really sound like a normal Limp song, so it was a surprising change of pace. Plus, I can’t be mad at an INXS cover unless it’s awful.

You Bring Out The Worst In Me starts out echoed and slow and then there’s a heavy bridge between slow verses of screaming and anger. Which given the lyrics of being stabbed, and bringing out the worst, it really shows the idea of the bad breaking through. It gives me a lot of Eat You Alive vibes, but it’s not bad. This album definitely feels a little all over the place, but I’m not directly mad at them trying to figure out what still works, especially with how long the album took to come out. Love the Hate continues with the songs dissing themselves. This takes the perspective of two kids just talking shit about how the band sucks, then as soon as the one admits they used to like Limp as a kid, the other guy turns on him. Like a Twitter conversation where the echo chamber is safe until something slips out and then suddenly the other person is worthless. The chorus of “Jokes on you, you missed one clue – We Don’t Give a Fuck” is very on brand and a good response for the internet crowd.

Barnacle is actually a fantastic little punk song. Only about 2 minutes long, and just does a great job at reminding me a little of Fear mixed with the heavier aspects of INXS. It’s actually a cool song. Empty Hole a simple song about when you need someone there’s no one. It definitely adds to the mixed tone of the album where it’s either classic, running themselves down or somber. Pill Popper sounds a bit like Ministry with the pharmaceutical radio announcement and then an interesting drum driven groove metal beat. Given that Durst has been more into screaming aspects of choruses in this album, the album really is sounding like Three Dollar Bill Y’all $ era of Limp at times.

Snacky Poo starts with a sound clip of just eating something from a bag, and then a very stripped down interlude beat. “I don’t need another motherfu- in my life, handing out advice, I need a snacky poo”. So this does get across the general sentiment of the album, they aren’t trying to make some world rocking revelation, they just want to help people enjoy things for a few minutes. I also appreciate the fact they’re just trying to bring back the 90s, so that’s great. The ending minute or so of Snacky Poo is beautiful. It’s a parody of a bad interview with someone calling Wes Borland and just reading off Wikipedia information and asking him if it’s true. The beauty of the awkwardness, all Wes says is Yes and Thanks, and the guy thinks it was a good interview is comedy gold.

Goodbye is probably one of the most aptly titled songs to end a song. And damn this starts off like a radio rock song. It feels really awkward given the way they approached the rest of the album with the throwback vibes, and this is so modern and radio it can only really top out at mediocre on a good day.

So Still Sucks was actually kind of an interesting ride of them embracing the fact they’re old and too stubborn to really let go of the Nu Metal sound, but that last song just sticks out like a sore thumb. Unless calling it Goodbye, was more of a legitimate “this is the last” so they went with a whole different sound cause their over; but that’s reading into possible imagery and obviously will still need to be seen. A really weak ending seems to be a similar trend in a lot of the albums this year.

All that being said, if you like Limp Bizkit, most of the album is solid and like I said earlier, it definitely gives more vibes of Three Dollar Bill, Y’all $ as opposed to any other album. Does it still suck? Nah, Limp Bizkit never sucked, you just can’t take a band seriously that doesn’t take themselves seriously. It was a nice little way to get closer to closing out the year with just some irreverent idiocy that allows for some reminiscing to the 90s. Production and everything is solid, so give a spin to the Limp, pimp.

Final Judgment: 7/10