The second Screaming Blue Messiahs album is louder, faster, and punchier than its predecessor; Kenny Harris’s drums are like being slapped in the head with a ping-pong paddle, Chris Thompson’s bass seizes every bit of sonic space available, and frontman Bill Carter’s guitar is a face-searing wall of fire. His manic lyrical imagery (lots of engines, lie detectors, and throbbing muscles, plus Superman and the Flintstones) is as entertaining as ever, and he reveals a soft side on the ballad “Waltz” and the title track, an almost Beach Boys-esque poem about a woman who may or may not be an alien.