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September 7, 2008 |
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ANATA - The Conductor's Departure
Earache (2006) |
9/10 |
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01. Downward Spiral Into Madness
02. Complete Demise
03. Better Grieved Than Fooled
04. The Great Juggler
05. Cold Heart Forged In Hell
06. I Would Dream Of Blood
07. Disobedience Pays
08. Children's Laughter
09. Renunciation
10. The Conductor's Departure
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Granted, it's a matter of perspective and the issue could be argued until the sun dies out and dinosaurs roam once more, but the most awe-inspiring, jaw dropping displays of musical proficiency lie cradled in the titanic arms of Technical Death Metal. Perhaps even more arguable but certainly formidable is the notion that five bands dominate the genre like no other: NECROPHAGIST, SUFFOCATION, CRYPTOPSY, BEHEMOTH and DECAPITATED. But the time has come to wipe up the blood, pick up the broken teeth and clear a spot next to these legends to make room for another stunning technical monstrosity: Make way for Sweden's ANATA.
Formed in 1993, ANATA are hardly what you would call a newcomer, but the process and transformation over the years has culminated in what should rightfully be known as the band's "piece de resistance", the penultimate ANATA record, and indeed one of the most technically gripping Death Metal albums ever created. To capture and sculpt a work that is brain-jarringly technical in every aspect and yet so overwhelmingly melodic and moving is a grand endeavor that very few have had the balls to attempt and even fewer have managed to achieve, but with "The Conductor's Departure" ANATA has certainly delivered a blueprint to show you how it's done.
Built on the groundwork of uncompromised brutality and overlaying stunningly beautiful melancholic melody, ANATA meld the two opposites so seamlessly that it'll leave you with the overwhelming urge to go beat up your landlord and buy your girlfriend flowers at the same time. Even at the peak of particularly intense blasts of unhinged, blistering Technical Death Metal fury complete with some of the most inhuman drum deliveries you are ever likely to witness, they somehow create a parallel ambient atmosphere of melody on a scale that should by all accounts clash completely but instead leaves the listener enrapt and awed at the sheer skill by which ANATA create such a profound symbiosis.
There could be no stronger argument to that point than the song, "The Great Juggler", whose title itself is indicative of the band's ability to infuse and collate such differential styles for our entertainment. Drummer Conny Pettersson is the "gluetality" that holds it all together (as is the case for the entire album), driving the music relentlessly with bionic blast beats and intricate percussion, paving the playground for the rest of the band to lay on thick coats of slick groove, alluring melody and eviscerating obscure guitar savagery like a merry-go-round for the morosely insane. Much of the same is to be said for the entire album, in particular the complexity of, "Downward Spiral Into Madness", the instrumental prowess of, "Children's Laughter" and the technically haunting eight and a half minute epic, "The Conductor's Departure".
Not only have ANATA outdone themselves with "The Conductor's Departure", they've created a work of technicality that could easily cast a strong shadow of shame into the minds of aspiring technical metallers. They've also introduced the industry to the next Extreme Metal drumming legend with Conny Pettersson, who not only defines the album with his incredible celerity, but rivals the most elite skin masters, including CRYPTOPSY's Flo Mounier and BEHEMOTH's Inferno, which in and of itself is truly a valid point of pride. Even if the Conductor's fate is to be a permanent departure and Anata find themselves interred "Under A Stone With No Inscription", this album has cemented a legacy for the band that will generate inspiration by the ton for years to come.
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