IT ALL BEGAN WITH LONELINESS

I really couldn't find too much about The Anchoret. "Canada" is the extent of what I could find about their origin, and their record label doesn't have much more information on them. This is a five-piece band that plays a melodic variety of progressive metal, with a number of notable jazz inclusions. With such a scarcity of information, let's jump right into their debut record, It All Began with Loneliness.

Despite the title, it actually begins with "An Office For?" This features some jazzy?if somewhat overwrought?guitar soloing before launching into a slow-moving, languid verse. The saxophone which shows up is also a bit on the corny end of things. But don't worry, things improve after this somewhat weak opening!

"A Dead Man" starts with a blistering riff that smoothly transitions into a mellower verse. The intensity builds up again, and I really like a lot of the watery guitar effects the band deploys. The mood vacillates between metallic intensity and quieter, jazz-infused moments. Piercing flute provides sharp contrast to vague, distorted guitars, and there's also a lovely organ solo that reminds me of Rick Wakeman's brief stint in The Strawbs. The closing minute or so again veers a bit deeper into cheese than I like, but it's not bad.

A rapid, chugging riff opens "Until the Sun Illuminates". Organ and synthesizer are both naturally integrated with the metallic backing, and the vocal performance is good. The song's midsection is enjoyable but not ultimately memorable. It ends strong, though, with a saxophone solo over a doomy guitar line.

I'm not wild about the vocal performance on "Someone Listening?". The raspy, strained vocals remind me too much of early '00s hard rock. The instrumental elements are pretty strong, though. As the song quiets down, saxophone again comes in for a light, jazzy solo. (I like saxophone, but I really wish metal bands that incorporated it would do more than just use it for solos. Be like Ihsahn or Æthĕrĭa Conscĭentĭa and actually utilize sax in the backbone of the song! I'm especially looking at you, Rivers of Nihil.) In the final third of the song, layers of vocals are stacked up to create a more ethereal feel, and it suits the spacy mood of the music well.

"Forsaken" has a slower, mournful opening. Electric piano underpins the verse, and the vocals are lightly affected. When guitars burst in, it's a powerful, Opeth-inspired riff; and the middle of the song has a wonderful, flashy, Emersonian synth solo. The final 90 seconds feature some great, creepy keyboard textures, too. "Buried" follows this and is pretty solid, except for its corny-ass final 20 seconds.

A Dream Theater-sounding synth-and-guitar passage opens "All Turns to Clay". And it seems the band (sorta) took my above critique into account, as there is a twisting sax line during the verse. (However, it feels more like a solo that they sing over than an integral part of the composition.) The riffs here are the tightest, fastest, and most pummeling of any on the album. I also like the prominence synths get in this song.

"Unafraid" has a solid groove to it, and the vocal performance is again pretty solid here. The main riff of the verse is a fun, technical passage that once more draws heavily from Dream Theater. This song is one of the best syntheses of the band's technicality and melodicism. The flute solo in the middle of this song is fantastic, too. It's tense, energetic, and anxious.

The final song here is "Stay". It's a good conclusion, though too much of its runtime is consumed by a guitar solo. It's a good solo, but it lingers for too long.

It All Began with Loneliness is a pretty solid release. It stays well within standard practices for modern prog, in terms of instrumentation and structure. I was slightly disappointed, as I found that it didn't quite hold up spectacularly under closer listening. (I initially listened to this in the background while doing other work.) Parts of it are a bit too reliant on tropes, and the sense of drama isn't necessarily always earned, either. It's still a good record, though, with some strong jazz integrations.

Review originally posted here: theeliteextremophile.com/2023/09/25/album-review-the-anchoret-it-all-began-with-loneliness/