Meat Loaf Bat Out Of Hell 3: The Monster Is Loose

2006, The long-awaited third record in the Bat Out of Hell trilogy, The Monster Is Loose, wears bombast, pretension and pyrotechnics proudly on its album sleeve and across the bulging disc's 15 tracks. More a pop orchestral mishmash than a well-defined rock opus, Bat III is dark, seemingly hopeless at times, and über dramatic. Oddly enough, that's also its saving grace. Meat Loaf and company create a great escape into the realm of grand theatricality, with a bunch of radio-friendly rock tunes that sound 20 years old and several lyrically memorable AOR ballads to sustain it all the way to Broadway. With collaborator (and occasional defendant in Meat Loaf lawsuits) Jim Steinman, plus producers Desmond Child and Todd Rundgren, the Meat man consistently has the big sound booming and his despair and his rage on to the point that listeners may feel his pain a little too often. Bat III ain't for sissies. Balanced by the powerful female voices of Marion Raven, Patti Russo, and Jennifer Hudson; along with guest musicians and songwriting help from Steve Vai, Marilyn Manson's John 5, Motley Crue's Nikki Sixx, Queen's Brian May, and others; Meat Loaf's Monster has roared the unlikely rock star back to life. The third instalment of the 'Bat Out Of Hell' series comes 13 years after volume 2 and almost 30 years after the original 'Bat Out Of Hell'; the third best-selling record of all time. An album full of dark, dramatic and epic rock masterpieces, 'Bat Out Of Hell Vol.3' features guest appearances from the legends such as Steve Vai, Todd Rundgren and Brian May and was produced by Desmond Child.