Artist Of The Week - Anchor & Braille

It's been about three years since we've gotten an album from Anchor & Braille, the indie side project of Anberlin's Stephen Christian, but this week, on July 31st, the band's sophomore album will be released. The Quiet Life is a collection of haunting melodies and catchy percussion, certainly a maturation of sound since 2009's Felt. The Quiet Life is available now in stores and online through Tooth & Nail Records.

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Artist: Impending Doom
Album: Baptized in Filth
Release Date: March 13, 2012
Label: eOne Music

"What we've wanted to capture with most of our stuff - from our sound to our appearance, artwork and stage presentation - is an overall tone [drawing from] the darker side of music." is what vocalist Brook Reeves had to say about the new Impending Doom album Baptized in Filth. Finally, when a band says they want to do something with an album they actually do it. The lyrical content is very dark, and heavy on this album and the intensity and heaviness of the music definitely adds to that darkness, as does the album cover for the album.

The music of Baptized in Filth is hard, fast, and relentless. There is not a moment on this album where you can catch your breath, the intensity runs through the entire album. The guitar work would be categorized as technical death metal in my opinion, lots of shredding with few to none of the cheesy tricks we've come to expect from the metal scene these days. The drumming is crazy, Brandon beats those drums like they just stole his girlfriend and his wallet. The speed and furiousness of his drumming really ties the entire thing together and exemplifies the anger and darkness of the album and it's lyrics. There is one instrumental track, which I'm not a big fan of. It doesn't take anything away from the pace or tone of the album, but it doesn't add a lot either.

Brook's lyrics may be some of the best lyrics I've heard in a very long time. The first single "For the Wicked" has some very powerful lyrics; "Take the number you've chosen/666 is one with the fallen" there it is in black and white, if you choose to follow the fallen angel, Lucifer, then you must live with the consequences of said decision. Another excerpt from "For the Wicked" is: "Rotting from the inside out/Destroying our bodies with the filth if the world/Creating a wretched spawn of existence" That is intense, but is 100% the truth about the deteriorating condition of the human race these days. Too often we are worshiping false idols in the form of celebrities, or even tv evangelists, and we're too consumed with our material possessions. All of these things are distractions from glorifying the kingdom of Christ. In another song he says "The revolution has started/To Hell with your hatred" I think that is a direct challenge to the people and things mentioned in "For the Wicked". One of my favorite lines comes from the song "Deceiver" in which Brook says "The filth you speak comes straight from Hell/The walls are weak and we can tell". People can build walls to keep Christ out but He sees the walls are weak and He'll be there waiting when they come tumbling down. One last excerpt I like is"Dead bodies stacked ten feet tall/Now the Devil's at your funeral", to me it says if you do the Devil's work, the Devil will get you in the end.

Overall: I know it's early in the year but I can guarantee when December rolls around Baptized in Filth will still be in the running for the best album of 2012 in my book. The music is intense, technical, and flawless. The lyrics did something that few albums do these days, they made me look at myself and see some of the things I'm doing wrong and need to work on. The lyrics spoke the truth, and they spoke them in a very dark yet realistic non-sugarcoated way, which really impressed me. One surprise on this album is the almost ballad-esque song "My Light Unseen" which features guest vocals from Ryan Clark of Demon Hunter, he adds a smoothness and somewhat calmness to the song and it compliments Brook's screams so well. I've never been a big Impending Doom fan, especially the older stuff, but this album has made me a fan and if this is what is to come from the band in the future they'll have a fan in me for quite some time.

Rating: 9/10

Recommended Tracks: "Deceiver", "For the Wicked", "Angry Letters to God", and "My Light Unseen"

Reviewed by: Michael Small

Tracklisting:
1. Murderer
2. For the Wicked
3. Chaos: Reborn
4. Deceiver
5. Falling Away
6. Absolute Horror
7. Angry Letters to God
8. Baptized in Filth
9. My Light Unseen
10. Death. Ascension. Resurrection



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1 comment:

  1. DeformedSnowmanFebruary 27, 2012 at 5:56 PM

    i personally have no religious beliefs, but that does not detract from the fact that this band has an excellent messege to put across which can be interpreted in a number of ways and still remain valid, and musicianship wise this a an amazing album, i much agree with you, great review a 9 is justified ;D

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