by Johnny LoftusAfter half a decade away from wax, M.O.D. returns with Rebel You Love to Hate. It features perpetual mouthpiece/bassist Billy Milano, who is joined this time out by guitarist Joe Affe and drummer Danny "DNA" Burkhardt. But while cynicism and bad taste have always figured heavily into Methods of Destruction's sound, the post-hardcore and thrash rants that rocked as hard as they offended are long gone, in favor of tired clichés, offensive posturing, and run-of-the-mill metal that's all bark and no bite. Rebel trudges along on jokes that seem left over from 1996's Dictated Aggression. "Wigga" is a tirade against "suburban prankstas" who "saw Colors and got a woody," while "De Men of Stein" is a head-scratching roast of the German scaremongers Rammstein (what did those guys ever do to Milano?). M.O.D. also tries to hide jingoism behind broad patriotism, and fails. "Makin' Friends Is Fun" and "Ass-Ghanistan" -- essentially the same song -- are misguided, uninformed, and embarrassing. Worst of all, they don't even rock. Of course, this is Rebel You Love to Hate's biggest problem. Where the band's belligerence was once buoyed by pummeling rhythms, Rebel's brief eight-song program is boring, by the numbers thrash metal. Two tepid remixes and three inexplicable "radio edits" of Rebel's existing tracks pad the album to 13, but chances are you won't be able to make it past track three anyway.