Review Summary: AI , robots and in between
Unleash the Archers have always known how to write albums that are not just albums but also tell a story. Concept albums are something the band has been doing for a long time and with great success.
Phantoma is a concept album that aims to talk about today’s hottest topic: AI. My problem with albums that talk about AI is that many artists adopt this direction, futurism, AI, robots, whether humanity will be replaced by machines, etc. I will always prefer words that focus on more rational things. According to Brittany, the singer, the band received quite a bit of criticism for choosing to integrate AI into the album creation process and in creating the clips. Unlike previous albums, the new album incorporates synthesizers, something that shows the band’s intention to progress to a more modern sound.
The album tells the story of Phantoma, an AI entity that moves from the world of screens where everything seems perfect to the “reality” world that is revealed to her as a lie compared to what she thought. The album starts with Human Era, at a relatively slow pace, with wonderful drums. Brittany is amazing on the album, maybe sounding the best she ever has. In this song, Phantoma goes out into the world and wants to meet the other side, humanity. In the song Phantoma, she feels she deserves more, that she was not meant to be inside a computer, but outside with humanity. She feels she can achieve more from her life and searches within herself to find Phantoma. This song is characterized by a faster tempo and very much reminds me of the band’s previous material. Brittany reaches very impressive heights here. The song has quite a few synthesizers and a wonderful solo. It is one of the best songs on the album and I would be happy if the rest of the songs reminded me of it in the intensity it delivers.
The song Buried in code continues its predecessor, Fast tempo. In this song, Phantoma is ready to leave for a better future. In the song Green and Glass, Phantoma discovers that humanity is not what she thought and that it is not perfect, and cracks begin to appear. The solo has a vibe of Trivium and indeed Brittany mentioned that they were inspired by them. In the song Gods of decay, Phantoma tries to save humanity from the collective, the army from the side she came from, but humanity laughs at her, and she realizes that they are not the humanity she used to love, and that there is no one to save, she doesn't feel equal to them. This song is another one of the changes the band decided to make. A more poppy song, slower, but still in my opinion the best song on the album. The fact that its chorus is so memorable and wonderful made me fall in love with the song. The solo is simply wonderful and greatly enhances the accessibility of this song for me.
The song Give it up or give it all is among the most different songs the band has ever written. The song starts with keys and continues with guitar as the tempo slightly intensifies, Phantoma discovers that she is alone. Both her world and human's world disappoint her. It is different from what she thought. She stands with her back to the wall and has only herself, without any help. The tempo of the song corresponds in my opinion with the stage in the story where Phantoma needs to understand what she must do, things calm down, everything becomes quieter, also the storm of emotions she is in, a bit like the song. In Ghost of mist, the war between humanity and machines began, that war from which Phantoma tried to warn humanity. In Seeking vengeance, Phantoma wants to take revenge on humanity, and she shows no mercy. She shows who she really is. This song is very reminiscent of Apex and Abyss and the bass line at the beginning is fantastic .I wish the bass had more presence on the album . In that song Phantoma becomes merciless and uninhibited. In the last song Blood empress, Phantoma understands who she has become, and she comes to terms with who she is and is even proud of it. The song starts with a distorted croak of Brittany as Phantoma says "I’m not a human nor a machine". This song is a kind of catharsis, the climax of the story. In my opinion, this is one of the best songs on the album. The pre chorus is the strong part of the song.
In summary, I have always loved the band’s concept albums. It seems that a lot of thought has been invested in them and there is no doubt that Brittany is very talented at writing the story. The production is good, the solos are interesting, and the drums are wonderful, but that’s not enough. Brittany said they were influenced by many bands during the creation of the album and wanted to incorporate a more poppy sound instead of making the same power album again. Although I understand the desire to evolve, I wasn't into it. A fast tempo and a sound that causes endorphins to fill the brain is what I love about their sound and in this album, it is less expressed. I sound that so characterizes the band much more, but I feel that this album is only a "Good" album and that is disappointing compared to what the band has released so far. This is an album that UTA fans will enjoy, there is still the sound that characterizes the band, it's not 180 degrees change but the accessibility of the sound damages it.
