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>>>> Magazines & Webzines >>> |
-Unrestrained! Issue #33
-BWBK Issue #102
-Metal Mayhem interview
-Metal Maniacs Interview TBA
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>>>> Newspaper articles >>> |
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>>>> Blabbermouth >>> |
By Scott Alisoglu
8/10
It is pleasant surprise time again. I'm talking about "Chapter Chaos Begins" by Montreal thrash kings ANONYMUS. It is a crime that more folks outside of Canada are not aware of the knuckle-busting thrash produced by this monster act. The group has moved quite a few units in its homeland and for good reason. An old school aesthetic, vicious riffing, varied arrangements, consistently solid songwriting, and a crisp production from the band and Jean-Francois Dagenais makes "Chapter Chaos Begins" a proud moment for thrash metal in 2006.
The kind of loose feel that was heard on old school records is present on the album, yet the trio of drummer/vocalist Carlos Araya, guitarist/vocalist Daniel Souto, and vocalist/bassist Oscar Souto is lethally tight, not to mention just plain ferocious. Oscar Souto's hostile barking and the razor sharp shred of his brother drives a compositionally accomplished and catchy group of songs. The guitars on this baby squawk, scream, and slice so violently that high-volume playing of the disc may cause deep lacerations for those standing too close. Stylistically, you'll hear bits of vintage METALLICA on a song like "Abusive Mental Anarchy", which incidentally happens to include a section in the middle of the track that sounds a good deal like the first part of the main riff to WHITE ZOMBIE's "Thunder Kiss '65" (for whatever that's worth). The almost nursery rhyme cadence on the bridge of killer "I Am Addicted", as well as the overall vibe, reminds one to some degree of classic ANNIHILATOR. The shouted chorus and frantic tempo of "Technology Kills" is straight from the Belladonna-era ANTHRAX book of thrash. That same type of crossover-influenced delivery is also heard on "Coupable", one of three songs sung entirely in French. The comparisons work more as reference points though, as the band does not lack identity.
In your face from start to finish and filled with the kind of screeching solos and riff maelstroms that will warm the hearts of old schoolers and newbies alike, "Chapter Chaos Begins" exemplifies why traditional thrash is so goddamn much fun. Just try to make it through the album without getting that humongous cranium of yours moving back and forth. This is tough stuff through and through.
http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/showreview.aspx?reviewID=961
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>>>> Exclaim >>> |
By Bill Whish
Dare I compare an established and respected Quebec death metal band to Trivium? Give Chapter Chaos Begins a listen and you'll definitely hear the similarities. At times Anonymus' fifth full-length does indeed radiate tinges of the ever-popular Trivium. But don't take it as a negative connotation, because 'Chapter Chaos Begins' is actually a kickass album, especially as you listen past the first few tracks. Another cool thing about Anonymus is that all three members of the Quebec-bred trio contribute in substantial ways to the vocals of the album, which leads to some pretty interesting variation in the singing along the way. This tidbit is made all the more impressive considering what a fury this band summon from their respective instruments. Riffs that sound like classic Slayer chugging or intricate new era thrash bands like the Crown can both be heard on this album. Chapter Chaos Begins has got a great array of headbanging devastation, and some toe-tapping groove -- it's even got a pretty cool all-French song. If only these guys were as big as Roadrunner's heavy metal darlings we'd feel no shame in enjoying their repertoire.
http://www.exclaim.ca/index.asp?layid=23&csid1=16150
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>>>> Metal Mayhem >>> |
By Darren Cowan
9/10
Canada's Anonymus seemed to have fed their musical interests on a steady diet of early 90's San Francisco Bay thrash with SLAYER and TESTAMENT being the meat and potatoes, and KATAKLYSM consumed as a side dish. "Chapter Chaos Begins" is a demonstration on how to fuse the best metal from the early 1990s and the various styles birthed during that period.
The title track and album opener starts in a similar fashion to Nevermore's "The Seven Tongues of God" with the band striking a couple notes, letting those notes ring out, and then doing it again, like a drag racer revving up his engine before a race. What comes next seems pulled out of nowhere. The trio comes at you full force, blasting away on the drums and picking with a furious abandon. These moments of brutal grind seem as if the group is trying to emulate fellow Canadians, Kataklysm. As they bust out the raging speed so early into the album, listeners may believe this is another Canadian grind band, only in part. The next section consists of raging Thrash, sang with abrasive, Robert Flynn-style vocals. Double bass and guitar harmonies support the group's clean choral arraignment further into the song.
The next track "I am Addicted" is my favorite. This track moves with a thrashing rhythm recalling Testament's "Trial by Fire". Anonymus' vocals are every bit as diverse as the music. "I am Addicted" is a perfect example of their legion of voices. The album's liner notes credits all three members as vocalists, so that may answer how they pull this off. "I am Addicted" sounds like Tom Araya from Slayer and Chuck Billy from Testament alternating their vocals from verse to verse. "Fonce Ou Creve" unveils a style I have never heard before, French Canadian Hardcore. Hard core vocals with a Brooklyn, New York accent are commonplace, but with a French accent? This is a new one to me, but it works.
"Chapter Chaos Begins" is a fun album. Listeners could make a game out of what style Anonymus is going to pull out next, what singer do they sound like or where from where do you think they borrowed inspiration for a riff? The multi personalities they bring to each song are only part of what makes this album such a great listen. The catchiness and expert production (Jean-Francois Dagenais of Kataklysm fame) are other notable attributes. Anonymus are without a doubt in the upper echelon of modern Thrash.
http://www.metal-mayhem.co.uk/reviews/anonymus.html
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>>>> Pivotal Rage Lite >>> |
By Jason E. Goltz
5/5
Another excellent release from Galy Records, Canada's Anonymus deliver up one of the world's purest thrash metal CDs in years. We freely give lip service to the thrash metal elements of many of today's best releases, but sorry folks, Unearth's third album just ain't thrash. I think we've forgotten that ragged, old-school sound of Overkill and Exodus; a listen to Chapter Chaos Begins will remedy that in a hurry. At first, one may not take too well to the vocals of bassist and singer Oscar Souto, but that's only because the opening title track is in fact the singer's weakest performance on the album. Despite the strength of the song, Souto sounds a little like he's missing some of the intended notes, but be patient. It's on track two that Souto and bandmates Daniel Souto (guitar) and Carlos Araya (drums) really hit their stride. "I Am Addicted" has Oscar Souto sounding like a man possessed as he belts out the song's title. This, along with the pessimistically Slayer-like "This Is War" and the final "Abusive Mental Anarchy," are the best songs on the CD, and much of the credit for these highlights no doubt goes to the twin guitar leads of Daniel Souto and . . . . What's that you say? There is no second guitarist?! Like current Nuclear Blast artists Communic, you'd never know from their sound alone that Anonymus is merely a trio. With liberal use of gang-style vocals and a massive drum beat to back things up, Anonymus truly sound as dense as any five-piece. Like any good thrash band, Anonymus also manage to pay homage to their punk roots with the anti-establishment anthem "Technology Kills," but be forewarned that if lyrics do matter to you, you'll have to develop a working understanding of both Spanish and French as three of the ten songs on Chapter Chaos Begins aren't in English. Hey, bon appetit anywayway.
http://webzine.pivotalalliance.com
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>>>> Montreal Mirror >>> |
By Johnson Cummins
7/10
Montreal has always been known to export great metal bands, like Cryptopsy, Gorguts and Kataklysm, and Anonymus possess all the elements to increase the city’s international reputation. These local thrashers know when to mix up old-school thrash with blast beats, while Oscar Souto’s metal-core vocals steer away from death grunts and falsetto clichés. Jean-François Dagenais’s crisp production also veers away from the metal platitudes like the typewriter-clack kick drum, and crunchy guitars thankfully fall right into the mix instead of taking our heads off.
http://www.montrealmirror.com/2006/121406/disc.html
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>>>> Pitriff.com>>> |
By Shawn Gould
4.5/5
These Canadians have the perfect band name, even if the spelling is a little off. I have never heard of ANONYMUS before, but after hearing Chapter Chaos Begins they certainly are not unknown to me, and I wonder why they are to anyone else. This is album is pure Bay Area Thrash at its best. Pure thrash has been sort of a dying genre for a decade now, but with the recent top shelf work of EXODUS and of course the triumphant return of SLAYER it seems to be making a comeback. I consider the equal of anything I have heard in the thrash field lately.
ANONYMUS recently pared down to a three peice act jetisoning co-lead vocalist Marco Calliari. Having never heard his contributions I can't say whether or not the move helped the band, but the resulting album makes me think they knew what they were doing. Chapter Chaos Begins is a wonderful cross section of head down power of SLAYER and the catchiness of SACRED REICH, in fact there were times I thought I was listening to new material from SACRED REICH. Singer/Bassist Oscar Souto sounds uncanninily like Phil Rind circa The American Way. He and drummer Carlos Araya lay down some massive bottom end that drive the pace of the album to sometimes insane levels. That pace is snagged and ran with by guitarist Daniel Souto, who has Kerry King like abilities and sound.
The songs are well fleshed out and never sell you short. From the opening title track right through "Abusive Mental Anarchy" ANONYMUS is attempting to wreck your neck as well as your psyche. The sound remotely like ANTHRAX on "I Am Addicted". Tracks like "This Is War" "Technolgy Kills" and "Faster" show a band that has discovered the Bay Area thrash playbook and are following it to the letter.
PITRIFF RATING - 9/10 - My only complaint would be that the band doesn't change pace enough, but name a thrash act from back in the day that did. Chapter Chaos Begins is not just a strong album for the depleted field that is thrash today, I think this album would have held its own back in 1986 as well. If you dig those old glory days and love what EXODUS and SLAYER are doing now then ANONYMUS is a band that you should be checking out.
http://pitriff.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Reviews&file=index&req=showcontent&id=712
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