Iggy Pop, “Every Loser.”

Iggy Pop is 75 years old and can be forgiven for being tired. The Stooges’ first record came out in 1969, when the flippin Beatles still existed.

Iggy invented punk rock. He slashed himself, stage-dove, did drugs, abused himself every way imaginable, lived with David Bowie, reinvented himself four, five or 12 times. He dug up The Stooges, became a poet, a jazz singer and the most beloved elder rock and roll statesman since young metalers worshipped at the feet of Lemmy Kilmister.

But one thing Iggy hasn’t been is a mascot. He came close in the late ’80s but turned around and made good enough music to prove his everlasting relevance. So what the hell – why not one comeback?

Enter super producer, guitarist and career reanimator Andrew Watt, who already brought Ozzy Osbourne back from being artistically dead. Why not throw him and his growing pack of regulars like Duff McKagen (Guns N’ Roses) and Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), and give old Iggy Pop one more chance making a big-sounding punk record?

Well … it worked.

New album Every Loser, which hits Jan. 6, is Iggy’s first release on Watt’s Goldtooth Records, and it’s an absolute treat for fans. Iggy Pop screams, he mocks, he whispers, he scolds, he laughs. He’s like an dog let off the leash for a surprisingly energetic romp, after 2019’s very serious Free.

Iggy’s and Watt’s intentions are clear from the first seconds of album opener and first single “Frenzy.” It rocks big, with the appropriate nasty, sneering tone that probably wouldn’t work in 2023 from anyone but the guy who was present at punk rock’s birth.

Second single “Strung Out Johnny” follows with a return to the lower registers of Iggy’s voice, which is still rich. It feels like Iggy Pop in his natural environment. Which brings us to third song, the legitimately weird “New Atlantis.” This is also the point of the record that wipes away any notion of Watt and company propping up a legend. It’s a cool song, but it’s also about Atlantis. What A&R guy pitches a classic rocker on selling a song about Atlantis?

“Modern Day Rip Off” is a punk burner with more sneering vocals and is one of the best songs on the record. The guitar playing might even be too good, but the riff legitimately moves, matching some acidic vocal tones in the chorus. The riff change into the lead is gold.

Iggy slows down and gets contemplative on “Morning Show,” with a thoughtful hook that is no threat of being overly thoughtful or catchy enough to be a single. That feels about right.

“The News for Andy” is a 55-second send-up of Iggy mixing the news with its advertisements, followed by the absolute fun of “Neo Punk.” It’s a staccato face-slapper of a chorus that sounds like the only survivor from a late night of garage jamming, which Iggy all but confirms with a big laugh at the end.

“All the Way Down” is a raw, mid-tempo, sincere cry for … help? Probably not. Just Iggy contemplating life smelling like death and his desire to “blow up a turd.” Sounds like something Charles Bukowski might appreciate.

Nine songs in, “Comments” is the record’s brilliant surprise. It sounds like the score to a dark video of rainy, dirty street scenes in a big city. It’s a song soaked in mood, with lines like, “The problem with life is that it stops.” It does just enough to make Iggy Pop sound aged, burned-out and wonderful.

“My Animus Interlude” is just over a minute of poetic … something, which goes into another candidate for the record’s best song, “The Regency.” The record’s longest song has much of the vibe of “Comments,” only busier. The chorus is brilliantly built, before sliding back down into that street groove. Iggy’s voice sounds great, as does the production. Watt lets Iggy’s voice lead the way – as it should – and fills in the space around it with enough bass pop or static guitar as necessary to convey mood.

Iggy and company will take “Every Loser” on the road this year and should be one of the rare senior citizen tours where the headliner can actually play new songs. I’m looking forward to it.

Follow music critic Tony Hicks at Twitter.com/TonyBaloney1967.