Style: Progressive sludge metal, progressive death metal (mixed vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Mastodon, Opeth, Enslaved, heavier Alice in Chains
Country: Canada
Release date: August 30th, 2024
When An Abstract Illusion dropped their opus Woe in 2022, it took the prog metal scene by storm accomplishing something most artists are incapable of, because as I said in my Woe review, creating is hard. There’s a certain momentum to creating that goes just as easily as it comes, and it multiplies in difficulty the more people you add into the mix. Woe was a massive undertaking that finally paid off in the form of praise and coveted scores, but that’s not always the case. Looking at you, Jari.
But on the eve of Time II’s release, a much smaller hiatus has been broken as well. Anciients’ Voice of the Void came out in 2016, and after that, the occasional update and promise of new music was all we got. But as I said in my intro, creating is tough. Anciients toughed out COVID, lineup changes, and life throwing everything at the band. The fact that they came out triumphant is worthy of a celebration in of itself, and a testament to how much passion they’ve got for their music. But does that passion carry over into the album itself?
Right off the bat, the first two songs are fantastic. ‘Forbidden Sanctuary’ sounds better than anything Mastodon has put out in years, and the main driving riff is what stuck out to me the most upon first listen. The song exploding into a blast beat around the seven-minute mark set all expectations high. ‘Despoiled’ only added to the hype, with riffs reminiscent of Crack the Skye-era Mastodon with a much faster, less moody atmosphere.
But, like a Prius with a rocket engine strapped to it, Beyond starts really strong and fizzles out way too soon, turning into a primordial mush that I can’t quite make heads or tails of. There are fantastic moments, like the back half and amazing keyboards of ‘Is It Your God’ or ‘Cloak of The Vast and Black’ picking up the tempo with its excellent verse, but most of the songs fly by without anything for me to latch onto. Normally, an album flying by isn’t a bad thing, but when Beyond ended, all I could think was “Alright”.
My mind isn’t as blown as I’d like to be. This isn’t an album like Zon where I was so overwhelmed with what I was listening to that I didn’t quite get it yet; this album is the opposite. I would say it’s easily as good as Voice of the Void, but rather than expanding upon that sound, Anciients seem to have drifted sideways. While still formidable in their own right, nothing here (aside from the occasional keyboard noodling) sounds fresh enough to warrant a higher score. The songs are all good, but lack distinguishing features in each that can elevate them from good to great. Even more frustratingly, Anciients are once again on the verge of a masterpiece, only to miss the mark by a hair.
This is a good album, don’t get me wrong. Anciients are incredibly consistent in what they do, and I’m not trying to take away from the album they crafted here. I’m happy they finally got this out, and at the very least, I hope they’re proud of what they did. But I’m left a little soured and wanting just slightly more. Perhaps my score will change by the end of the year, but this is one of the few where I’ve been dead set on the rating since first listen. A valiant effort, just not quite there yet.
Recommended tracks: Forbidden Sanctuary, Despoiled, Cloak of The Vast and Black
You may also like: Obsidian Tide, Witch Ripper, Wills Dissolve, Astrakhan
Final verdict: 7/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page
Label: Season of Mist – Bandcamp | Facebook
Anciients is:
– Mike Hannay (Drums)
– Kenneth Paul Cook (guitars, vocals)
– Brock MacInnes (guitars)
– Rory O’Brien (bass)
