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Reviews

Anyone — On the Ending Earth...
(TogethermenT no#, 2018/2020, DL)

Anyone — In Humanity
(TogethermenT no#, 2021, DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2022-03-08

On the Ending Earth... Cover artIn Humanity Cover art

Anyone, aside from being a band name that presents challenges for those searching online, is a musical entity that consists primarily of multi-instrumentalist Riz Story, who favors epic concept albums like these two. On the Ending Earth... came out in 2018 and consists of 13 tracks ranging from technical workouts to anthemic ballads. Some of the more aggressive sections border on prog-metal, though to my ears it generally sounds more like 90s alternative rock spiced up with progressive trappings, especially in the keyboards. There are odd meters here and there as well. It’s not as eccentric and frenetic as The Mars Volta, but is in the same general area. The drums are busy and full of tricky details, the bass parts are often quite prominent, the guitar is flashy and shreddy at times, and the vocals are strong. There’s also a good sense of pacing through the course of the album, providing respite from the intensity with acoustic sections. It’s all quite well done, and Story manages to bring a very live feel to the material at odds with the one-man-band reality. For some reason (and I may be off base here) a comparison comes to mind: it’s like what would happen if Jane’s Addiction had listened to a bunch of Marillion albums, followed up with a bit of Radiohead. The album is ambitious and superbly made, though it leaves me a bit cold — it never grabs me emotionally.

Speaking of ambitious, Story followed up On the Ending Earth... with In Humanity in 2021, and it’s a double-CD concept album running upwards of an hour and a half. It also consists of 13 tracks, which tells you that they are on average longer than those on the earlier album. Overall, there’s more variety in sounds and textures and a looser vibe. There also seems to be more bombast, with masses of backing vocal parts and pipe organ sounds, as on “Apocalypse.” Conversely, there’s a bit more variation as well, like the odd rhythms on “Emergence,” especially in the opening section. Several of the longer tracks include atmospheric sections. All in all, In Humanity is a more varied and impressive release, though its length is daunting. Fans of epic progressive rock looking for a new player in the genre should check out Anyone, starting with In Humanity.

Filed under: New releases, 2020 releases, 2018 recordings, 2021 releases

Related artist(s): Anyone

More info
http://www.anyoneden.net/inhumanity

 

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