On this sprawling, consistently excellent album, Iggy Pop bares psychic scars, opines about the State of the Union and even impersonates a Roman emperor. Iggy sounds looser than he’s been in years, aided by Malcolm Burn’s well-focused production and Eric Schermerhorn's lacerating lead guitar. Over the course of these tracks, Pop owns up to social alienation (“F__in’ Alone”), corrosive envy (“Jealousy”) and erotic maladjustment (“Sickness”). He’s at his best when he embraces his twisted past with glee, as on the searing yet buoyant “Perforation Problems.” At times — especially during “Plastic & Concrete” and “Boogie Boy”—– Iggy approaches the primal madness of his Stooges days. At the other end of the spectrum lie “It’s Our Love” and “Beside You,” bruised rock ballads highlighting Pop’s cellar-deep croon. From the delectably sleazy “Wild America” to the comically bloodthirsty “Caesar” (a riveting spoken word performance), Iggy is all over the place, yet never stumbles. Overall, American Caesar is one of his best efforts, masterfully executed yet crazed at its core.