1. What were your VERY FIRST impressions on listening to the album, say from the first five minutes in?
BOOMBOOMBOOOOOOM....oh hai Damian! It's been awhile!
2. What did you think of the opening tracks?
Punchy stuff, albeit nothing that special despite the folks involved. 'Fall Of America' is the strongest number of the opening trimvirate though:
Richard Brook and his magnificent drumming gets raised a bit higher in the mix than the other cuts, and some of the keyboard motifs courtesy of the junior Wakeman aren't too shabby either.
3. What did you think of the later tracks?
I like them, but I feel 'Daddy Effing Loves You' soaked up all the really good riffs for Side B.
4. Did you like the vocalist? Hate him/her? Any impressions?
Like or hate Headspace,
Damian Wilson is a magnificent singer. Unlike a lot of other frontmen who got started in the late 80's, he just seems to get stronger as a vocalist as the years go on instead of diminishing (something I noted on the latest
Threshold record as well!).
5. Did the music (only) generally appeal to you, or not?
I always dig me some progressive metal, even if it was pretty much what I expected considering the cast of players involved.
6. Did the album get better or worse as you listened to it (first time)?
I Am Anonymous is certainly a grower, but it hasn't worsened or gotten particularly more amazing in the time I've been exposed to it since last year either.
7. What did you think of the lyrical content?
Typically political, yet politically untypical. A common trait in most progressive metal since the genre's heady inception, and not too far away from what you'll hear from modern Australian prog. metal or Damian's main band Threshold.
8. Did you like the instrumental parts?
Yep! As others have pointed out, the axework from Pete Rinaldi here is the most muscular sounding aspect present here, but the rest of the band gets plenty of opportunity to shine as well.
9. What did you think of the production?
Above average for the most part: the mix has that excessively clean quality that a lot of European progressive metal seems to have: no grit, but plenty of instrumental clarity.
10. How well do you already know the band/artist?
Decently.
11. What sub-genre, if any, would you assign this music to?
Progressive metal, plain and simple!
12. On repeated listens, did you find you liked the album more, or less?
Hard to say really. Still on the fence about it!
13. What would you class as your favourite track, if you have one?
'Fall Of America'.
14. And the one you liked least?
Probably 'Invasion', as it comes off as a tad too angular groove-wise.
15. Did the fact that this album is a debut/sophomore/middle period or later period allow it, in your mind, any leeway, and if so, was that decision justified or vindicated?
It's a debut, but everyone who participated in this album is a veteran in some respect. It certainly beats the living daylights out of that awful
Snakecharmer album I heard not long ago!
16. Are you now looking forward to hearing other albums by the band/artist?
I certainly would, especially if they evolve their sound beyond typical progressive metal idioms.
17. Did you get, thematically, the idea behind the album if there was one?
Nah: the political subtext is somewhat apparent, but I'd need to read some linear notes or something to really dig into this aspect of the album.
18. Did the album end well?
Eh, decently enough.
19. Do you see any way the album could have been improved?
Hard to say....I would have liked a curveball somewhere in here I guess. Sometimes too much consistency is a bad thing, ya know?
20. Do you think the album hung together well, ie was a fully cohesive unit, or was it a bit hit-and-miss?
It hung together well in an auditory sense....but in this case, I think that sameness worked against the project.
I'll conclude this review by saying that
I Am Anonymous has some gorgeous ideas scattered about, but it doesn't do enough to establish a strong sonic identity that would really distinguish itself amidst a million other progressive metal records that have been coming out for the last....two decades? It has that contemporary yet organic craftsmanship I like in bands such as
Porcupine Tree or
Riverside, yet it isn't as memorable as anything those two bands have done.
In short, this is a good companion record to Threshold's
March Of Progress from last year (or if you are a fan of bands like
Sieges Even or
Subsignal), but that album is a cut above this one I'm afraid. Maybe next time fellas!
Overall Album Rating:
7.5 out of 10