At Criterion, someone (hope springs eternal) must have noticed that the name Anata was missing among the Scandinavian groups devoted to Death metal; I know you're chomping at the bit to read the answer to this existential doubt, but the answer is easy…
Because Anata have absolutely nothing to do with the mediocre groups listed on that occasion, and I'll say more, they are the authors of one of the most refined and artistically valid proposals in the entire metal scene; in particular, they have been the only ones capable of rejuvenating Melodic Death and leading it, instead of towards commercialization, towards the shores of the most uncompromising Death. Pinpointing influences, precisely because of the strong novelty represented by Anata, becomes difficult and practically resolves by saying that they inherit the influence of all that is good produced by melodic and non-melodic Death from the year of our Lord nineteen ninety-five to today; in particular, as it is naturally, one finds typical European Death sounds (Sinister, Vader, Trauma etc), Swedish ones (Opeth, Dark Tranquillity, At The Gates), and, more nuanced, of early American Death (the usual four or five names I stuff into every review).
“So what?” I know many are saying: and yet no, Anata use their heads, and how they use them! Try to imagine listening to a perfect blend of Morbid Angel and In Flames; what would come out of it? Anata. Has anyone ever done anything like this? No. And why not? Because it's a crazy thing. This is not just raving, it's also the answer to any possible retort. The quintet has more or less systematically decided to dismantle the Melodic Death and normal Death into functional units, then reassemble the pieces together and see which fit well together and which do not; but what they have best succeeded in is making the frequent incoherence of the tracks their strong point. The tactic had already been tested in the 2004 “Under A Stone With No Inscription” and, even before, in “Dreams Of Death And Dismay” (and even before that with "The Infernal Depths Of Hatred" and some demos) and it worked well; so this time they decided to go big and a few months ago they delivered to the press this mastodon lasting almost an hour.
It seems redundant to me to say that the technical abilities of the quintet verge on the absurd and that they are comparable to other sacred monsters in terms of skill (their way of playing reminds me a bit of Nile's). The guitar tracks are really difficult and unwind through wild scales, melodic openings, major chords, then minor, then chaos and power, and again a hidden feeling coming from who knows where. In short, metaphorically speaking, one can distinguish two well-distinct voices in the guitar lines that provoke and respond to each other, that chase each other, quarrel, and miraculously generate something cohesive, albeit uncoordinated. The drummer, like his companions, can boast exceptional technique that he demonstrates not only in correct execution but also in the ability to perfectly integrate elements from different genres using his own inventiveness as glue. He is, in fact, not just a good performer and manages with his (incalculable) tempo changes to shape his ideas. Bad note instead for the bass and the singer: the former gets lost in the riffing (except on a few occasions), but for this one can always blame the producer, while the latter offers an impeccable performance but lacks that something that distinguishes those of his “band mates”. Here Giorgione is needed (I am referring to George Fisher of Cannibal Corpse) who in Paths Of Possession showed he can also deal with melody: this singer is not to be discarded, only his growling is a bit monotonous and ends up embodying only one of the two souls of Anata, the one more linked to Old School Death.
However, in terms of atmosphere, I cannot say that I appreciate this CD very much: the fault lies with my “restricted cerebral capacity” (this is for insiders) that prevents me from fully immersing myself in this work and grasping its evocative side. As soon as one of the songs starts to communicate something to me, it changes course and I find myself bewildered, no longer knowing what I was feeling: disorienting and disoriented might be the right definition. But at this point, I start to think that perhaps Anata wanted to put too much meat on the fire and that perhaps their past work was better; they certainly have shown great growth compared to the past, but the very fact that here the blend between anger and poignant openings works better makes it all more difficult. Songs like the title track, lasting over eight minutes, flaunt exaggerated sophistication that ends up clearing and purifying the listener's mind instead of enriching it with new content.
But whatever your opinion on the matter, these five Swedish guys definitely deserve the success they are beginning to enjoy worldwide and nothing takes away the top marks from “The Conductor’s Departure”, a great demonstration of how talent and application can open new paths.
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