Review Summary: Fast and focused
Parrhesia is Animals as Leader's most focused album to date. It is less jazzy and gentle than 2016's "Madness of Many," less poppy than 2014's "The Joy of Motion."
Songs like "Monomyth" and "Micro-Aggressions" demonstrate the band's matured songwriting and technical prowess.
Take "Monomyth," compared with 2011's "CAFO." Both feature a rhythmic, head-nodding mantra, guitar solos, and a heavy ending. However, Monomyth's heavy ending contorts its mantra, where CAFO's heavy ending is largely rhythmically unrelated. Monomyth's guitar solos are less hurried and harmonically richer than CAFO's. The middle section of Monomyth demonstrates a thumb-based guitar technique not present on the band's 2011 album. Monomyth features Matt Garstka's machine-like drum performance, where CAFO's drums are programmed.
"Micro-Aggressions" exhibits a pioneering guitar technique as well as anything in the band's discography. The two-handled playing style, called selective picking, was developed by guitarist Tosin Abasi. Months before the album release, the song was teased under the name "Selective Picking Etude 4" on Tosin's YouTube channel, where he details the ways in which he challenged himself with the composition.
Parrhesia's calm moments are shorter than the bands recent previous albums. The introductory groove in "Red Miso" quickly dissolves into madness. "Asahi" is a two minute intermission. This contrasts with 2014's "Para Mexer" or 2016's 12 minute, largely acoustic ending across "The Brain Dance" and "Apeirophobia."
Even poppy moments like 2014's "Physical Education" are largely confined to the track "Gestaltzerfall."
Parrhesia is the band's shortest album. It showcases the band at their most technical. It focuses on what they do best. No one else makes music quite like this.
