AJJ – The Bible 2

In the Name of the Father, Son and the Truly Morbid

Let’s get straight to the point. This album is weird – really weird. It is so morbid, in fact, that if your parents were to hear you listening to it, they’d develop quite a concern for you. If you are not into dismal, grotesque imagery smeared like dirt over small nuggets of truth, this album is not for you. Yet if you find solace in lyrics that are meant to make you frown, classic punk rhythms and the occasional folksy acoustic break, The Bible 2 by AJJ, formerly known as Andrew Jackson Jihad, might just take you to church.

If you’ve made it this far, you think that you can handle the weirdness. You remember that time your mom went out with the garbage man and think, “What could be weirder than that?” Lyrics such as “I lit a baby on fire/ Not even Jesus could stop me” in “Cody’s Theme” and “I witness greatness/ I kick its teeth in/ more teeth sprouted/ just like the skull of a child” in “Terrifyer” constitute just a taste of the unsettling nature of this album. Clearly, The Bible 2 was created to elicit a response, to make you really think about the lyrics mean beyond their hardened and slimy exterior. It is difficult, however, to actually delve into the meanings in these tracks while lyrics like “This heart pumps baby piss” in “My Brain is a Human Body” and “I found a small red boy in tummy” in “Small Red Boy,” leave little more than their shock value in your memory.

Sean Bonenette’s vocal delivery only builds on the uneasy feeling of this album, as his voice resembles a grim copy of FIDLAR’s Zac Carper, distorted and deeply foreboding.

AJJ seems to be aware of the cutting nature of their work, as almost every track on the album is about two minutes and twenty seconds long. This strategic length makes the depressing and heavy lyrics much easier to swallow. Moreover, The Bible 2 is a mixed bag of musical stylings. For instance, tracks like “Golden Eagle,” “Goodbye, Oh Goodbye,” and “My Brain is a Human Body” all resemble classic punk jams, with intense guitar, rumbling bass, and unapologetic percussion. Meanwhile, tracks like “Junkie Church,” “White Worms” and “Small Red Boy” are all folksy yet dark acoustic ballads, tracks that would be great for a vampire funeral or a Goth wedding. Every track is dark, of course, but you get an interesting array of greys and blacks as you cower through the album.

If you are interested in weird, unsightly lyrics and morbid imagery, The Bible 2 is your slice of eccentric heaven. But if you just want your mom to stop dating the garbage man, however, blast this record within her earshot and her only focus will become figuring out whatever the heck is wrong with you.