Album Review: Anvil - One and Only
Reviewed by Drew McCarthy
Anvil are a heavy metal band that for the vast majority of fans of a certain generation were discovered due to the documentary, Anvil: The Story of Anvil which was released in 2009. A documentary I would definitely recommend any rock and metal fan to watch as it is incredibly eye opening, showing just how many bands that Anvil had an influence on and how they deserved to be a lot more well known than they are.
'One and Only' is an album offering an unswerving dedication to the genre that finds Anvil once again returning to their classic and straightforward sound, spurned on by the powerful, familiar riffs and vocals of frontman ‘Lips’. They drop the more modern aspects found on their later albums and once again revisiting what made them such influential pioneers of the metal genre back in the day.
The title track of 'One and Only' kicks things off nicely with a stunning riff fuelled stomper of a song, hitting home with an AC/DC-esque influence, this is followed up by 'Feed Your Fantasy', which seems to of taken a few cues from Status Quo, bled together with harmonies reminiscent of Uriah Heep.
Anvil though are a band that should not be pigeonholed as just another generic heavy metal band, as this album proves that these lads have plenty of variety to showcase to new and old fans alike. Several of the songs on 'One and Only' seem to have contemporary themes, 'World Of Fools' being a pretty good example of a self explanatory song title. What impresses me the most though about Anvil, is that even after all the adversity and set backs that have plagued them over their forty five years together, they are still refusing to call it day. This attitude to keeping the dream alive seems to have been helped in no small way with the addition of bassist Chris Robertson ten years ago, a move that seems to have reinvigorated them.
This new slab of heavy metal by Anvil feels like a thunderous celebration of their metal roots while at the same time almost effortlessly bringing together influences from bands as varied as the previously mentioned Status Quo and Motörhead. All the while it may be rooted firmly in the past, Anvil are forging ahead with a dogged determination, making the music that they want to make, without resorting to any sort of gimmicks that some bands have found themselves doing, fusing together their present style with the varied tapestry of the history of metal. While it is treading a path that many bands have done before, when it is done as well as this, I doubt that many people will be complaining.
