Anteater

Australia, in recent years atleast, has become something of a mecca for unusual and entertaining rock bands who draw upon the adventurous spirit spearheaded by many a 90's act (Faith No More, Deftones, Incubus) whilst pummeling in semantic grooves learned from the halls of T&M (Tool & Meshuggah) University in equal measure. Some of these groups have even achieved international success, such as Karnivool and The Butterfly Effect.

That being said, the newest and perhaps most promising bunch of this Down Under-stated prog scene are Twelve Foot Ninja, who have slowly but surely been building their celebrity online through a series of entertaining interviews, videos and even a freakin' track-by-track graphic novel as part of the pre-release hype engine in celebration of debut album Silent Machine, released earlier this year to many an excited fan....including myself.

Listening through Silent Machine the first time, you are struck by a few things immediately as opening number 'Coming For You' stampedes into the room: these guys not only know how to bend disparate styles and genres into the great alt. rock umbrella without undercutting the songwriting....they do it really, really, really fucking well. Dispersing a Calypso/reggae bridge and hook amidst a very Tool-esque chord progression isn't something just anyone can pull off, but these guys blow it out of the water, and the rest of the album displays that same dynamic reach in spades. The title track, my favorite song off the album, glides along the theatrical borderline between Queensryche and Faith No More with an ease that's nearly horrifying....but in a way that compels repeat listens en masse.

This is a bizarre, but wonderful metalized album that will certainly be cementing Twelve Foot Ninja as a musical magnate in 2013 and beyond, vehemently reviving that experimental yet catchy sense of ferocity I thought lieth in the corpses of Dog Fashion Disco and Boy Hits Car.

As good as Deftones' Koi No Yokan was, this record makes them look almost pedestrian in comparison, and thus its here instead of them.

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Anteater's 21 Fav Albums Of 2020

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duga

I felt School of Seven Bells grew tremendously from Alpinisms to Disconnect From Desire (both of which I loved), but I actually felt that Ghostory stagnated a little. It's still a good album, but it was a little dull compared to their other 2 albums.

I'll definitely be checking out a few of those other albums you mentioned, though.

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Anteater

When your name translates from Latin vulgate into "Do Not Forget', uncertainty abounds before you even attempt to dive into Australian black metal newcomers Ne Obliviscaris. Preliminary research would show you that they, along with Sydney tech-death band Ouroboros, received a sizable grant (about 20K each in fact) from the Australian government for recording purposes and whatever else they require. Putting the information in context with this review, its a miracle that Portal Of I came out at all: the band had been trying for years to get it off the ground, but thanks to government support and recognition they were able to bring this fantastic record to life for the benefit of guys like you and me. Very inspiring stuff!

Vocally, there is wonderful contrast throughout: we have a combination of voracious snarling courtesy of Xenoyr and the high soaring tenor of violinist Tim Charles. And this contrast doesn't just include mic tag teaming: the songs themselves pass back & forth along a chromatic divide between melody and dissonance. Sometimes you'll have a gregarious guitar solo sear the horizon while the earth crumbles below to the blast-beating force of the drums and bass, and other times you find yourself enraptured by what happens when the metal elements are dropped completely. 'Tapestry Of The Starless Abstract', for instance, features a drop dead gorgeous middle section where acoustic guitar, melancholic violin and eerie patches of synth muse together at sundown before the violence surges back in for the final five minutes.

Many a black metal band has reaped the benefits from a gradual shift into more multifaceted sonic frameworks that draw upon sophisticated jazz and classical elements in other genres, but Ne Obliviscaris have already eclipsed most of them as far as sheer finesse goes in the space of a single, insanely well conceived debut release.

Being progressive doesn't mean alternating your elements or shoehorning in uncharacteristic "whacky" genre-bending interludes between 50 minutes or so of aural pummeling: it's bringing in little bits and pieces of everything all at once, letting the overall result speak for itself....and from that perspective, this band is already right on track to redefining black metal as we know it. If they didn't make my top 2012 list, then something would have been really, really, really wrong.

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Anteater's 21 Fav Albums Of 2020

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misspoptart

I had no idea I was going to enjoy "Silent Machine" from Twelve Foot Ninja that much, and then when I clicked to watch "Coming For You," I loved it so hard I'm still in disbelief minutes later.

It's not that your album picks aren't good -- on the contrary, they are all exotic and fun and flavorful -- but I just wasn't really expecting to be in to any of them that hard because I'm not familiar with any of the genres.

Thanks so much for the awesome reviews!! Keep 'em coming

Trollheart

A merry Christmas t'ya, Ant!
I also reviewed "Ghostory" for my journal. I was rather amazed at a) how unlike what I expected it to be (prog rock) it was and b) how much I enjoyed it despite that. Great album and although not usually the sort of thing I listen to I'm glad to have discovered School of Seven Bells, and glad to see you're also listening to them.

Great reviews as always. I'll give that Sonic Station crowd a listen soon as I get a sec. Sounds right up my particular boulevard!

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Anteater

misspoptart & Trollheart: A Merry Christmas to both of you, and thanks for the 'vonderful feedback! And yes Troll, I think you'll dig Sonic Station quite a bit.


Let's be quite clear here my fine feathered friends: I listen and appreciate a variety of genres. That doesn't mean I'll fall in love with your favorite post-hardcore record at first ring, but even the people out there who don't like me will concede (grudgingly) that I have an uncharacteristically open mind. That being said, progressive rock is and always will be my favorite genre of music: for every pretentious over-indulgent half-assed record that stumbles out bloated into the marketplace, there's usually two or three records a year that set the bar rather high for other bands (other genres included) to aspire to. English Electric Part 1, the latest and greatest album from the modern era's heir to the Genesis throne, is one such record, and also my big pick of the year for the genre too.

Although Big Big Train started off as yet-another neo-prog. outfit back in the early 90's, this was a band whose evolution is something to be in awe of: 2007's The Difference Machine was about as contemporary as you got, blending the best of Radiohead and Tears For Fears into their own harrowing atmospheric prescription, and 2009's The Underfall Yard saw yet another shift stylistically into a highly wound, modern take on the Genesisian sound circa A Trick Of The Tail/Wind & Wuthering, due in no small part to the recruitment of new vocalist and flautist David Longdon.

Three years from that point and lots of good music later, English Electric Part I is a monstrously fun outing for anyone with even the slightest interest in a symphonic, multifaceted take on modern progressive rock, contextualized thematically and lyrically on incidents and individuals from England's industrial era. Led along by the warm, yet furnished vocals and flute skillz of Longdon (who really does sound a helluva lot like a hybrid of Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins), the fluid guitar work of Dave Gregory (of XTC fame), longstanding bassist Greg Spawton and keyboardist Andy Poole, soaring numbers like 'The First Rebreather' and the banjo-pop of 'Uncle Jack' come to a vivid sort of life and stand out even more thanks to the incredible production that provides the canvas.

This is a very rich sounding record: lots of finer details are embellished from song to song, including a full-blown brass band and orchestral elements that serve to expand the arrangements. Nowhere is this awesomeness more evident than at the end of a cut like 'Summoned By Bells', where the climax segues into a lonely horn solo that echoes, subdued yet starkly visible, into the high end and out of sight as things drawn to a close....and there are so many other moments that stand out just as much.

For my readers living in the U.K., you'll probably appreciate this record far more intimately than some Yank like me could, but this is a masterstroke by anybody's standards. If you're going to pick up only one prog record before the end of the year, make this your first and final stop!

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Anteater's 21 Fav Albums Of 2020

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Mojo

I didn't even know that Melody Gardot record was out, so thanks for that! I'll be straight on that. Theres a few albums here I haven't heard of as well, so looks like this is a thread to pay close attention to.

Great work, Anteater.

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Anteater

mojo: Didn't know you were a fan of her: awesome! I'm still surprised more people don't talk about her around here though, especially now that we're at the end of the year.


There's something deliciously liberating about a band just cutting the fuck loose and attempting to record something as grandiose and psychedelic as some of the great early 70's jazz entrepreneurs were prone to do once the acid dropped and the coke went up like smoke. Conjuring this sort of demon, complete with lots of free jazz zaniness amidst the crushing tides of sound, illuminated by moments of zen like serenity and vocals that get under your skin....its certainly no walk in the park, especially when 95% of music listeners out there have ADD and probably don't give much of a **** to begin with about your music.

I suppose that's partly why I have nothing but respect for a band like Motorpsycho, who took flight in the late 80's as a enterprising, adept psychedelic grunge band in Norway around the same time as Soundgarden and Nirvana were coming into their own here in the U.S. Unlike their westside peers though, Motorpsycho have never stopped evolving or recording new, oftentimes fascinating material for the better part of the last twenty years. Simply put, they are the quintessential Indie rock group of the modern era, worshiped in their own country as gods...but probably deserve a larger international audience.

Moving on to The Death Defying Unicorn, its a double LP done in collaboration with jazz keyboardist Ståle Storløkken (of Supersilent fame) and functions as a spacehopping fable of sorts for its titular character expressed through the fractal lens of musicality that sounds more at home on a Sun Ra or Black Sabbath record than something that Motorpsycho would have done in the past. Heavy, fuzz blasted riffs collide with squealing saxophones, lilting orchestral strings and unsettling vocal extrapolations straight out of an acid folk extravaganza....and its a journey unlike any other I've had this year.

When you listen to The Death Defying Unicorn for the first time, keep in mind that these guys were cutting their teeth at bars covering Husker Du and Sonic Youth before I was even born. That they've gone from that to this in the space of two decades is nothing short of frightening....and magnificent.

P.S. -- HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!

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Anteater's 21 Fav Albums Of 2020

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Anteater

And thus we arrive at 2012's #1 record of the year for me -- a pop masterpiece that blends the best of 90's alternative rock and pop punk with the synthesized magnificence inspired by 80's hook masters like Tears For Fears and Mr. Mister....all courtesy of some jack-of-all trades musical genius living in San Antonio in my good ol' home state of Texas by the name of Colton Holliday.

Although he was originally the lead vocalist of post-hardcore group Carbon 12 Theory back in the early 2000's, The Panic Division is Colton's musical baby: he's involved heavily in every aspect: he sings, shreds guitar, writes the songs, and produces everything on top of that. Due to this, Eternalism is a goddamn Archon of a record, monstrously infectious and consistent to the point of worship. It is unlike anything else out there right now, and yet appeals to anyone with a taste for both the 80's and 90's in equal measure.

The songs themselves are bubbling pockets of pop perfection, boiling with all kinds of neat details and grit under all the dazzling layers. Colton's voice overseers the whole shebang, suspended somewhere between Roland Orzabal and that guy from All Time Low, a narrator whose inflections and delivery morph to fit the needs of whatever song is blasting. Variety is present in many a viral flavor: 'Marching Tide/Silver Rings' is a straight up frat-jam with killer melody, while the New Romantic in you might find yourself fist pumping a bit to 'The Labor Of Love' and 'Too Young To Fall' despite yourselves: they'd have sold out arenas two decades ago in a heartbeat.

At this point I'm merely rambling, but here's a little secret: it's really, really, really ****ing hard to do a good pop record, moreso than anyone generally appreciates. But as Herculean as that tends to be, it's even harder to do something as melodically sublime as Eternalism. It blows every other 80's nostalgia trip from the last ten years out of the goddamn water, and does so with mercurial ease.

And that, brothers and sisters, is where the road ends in 2012 for me.

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Anteater's 21 Fav Albums Of 2020

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Mrd00d

Cool list. Wish I could find that Brian Auger and Twelve Foot Ninja. Downloaded some old stuff of each.

Ne Obliviscaris was pretty cool too.

Still checking into some 2012 albums.

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