Review Summary: A record that may not be for everyone...
To be completely honest with you, I had never really gotten into Norma Jean, or The Chariot. I know that the two are completely different bands, but they were founded by the same member. I never listened to O God, the Aftermath, but I had listened to Redeemer, and honestly, it sucked. Terribly. I kind of like music with my screaming, but what I heard was spine-snapping feedback, with static-y screams. I tried going through the lyrics with the music, and I was completely lost. Basically, it was a complete waste of disc space.
Not to be prejudicial, but when The Anti-Mother came out, and I gave it a spin, I found comletely no difference.
It starts with "Vipers, Snakes, and Actors", with feedback (of course), a drum fill, and a guitar riff. Sounds good, right? Then comes the impossible-to-understand screaming, which completely ruined this record for me. The song sticks to the same riff, while the vocalist screams over and over again "YOU WEAR THAT CROSS LIKE A DAGGER!". It continues on with the same formula throughout every song. Sure, they have the guest spots, which are probably the only highlight on the album, but even those are littered with agony-filled shrieks, because the guest singers try to scream like Cory.
The guest spots sing a little bit as well, which makes the songs strong, but that's the only thing I enjoyed while listening.
Cory decides to sing on several songs, but it sounds quite..........strange. Very flat sounding, which may be the sound they were going for, but either way, it was not my cup of tea.
Overall, this record shouldn't have happened, in my opinion. It may have been their goal to make a record that was chaotic, and hard to understand, but music is supposed to be enjoyable.
I gave this cd a 2.5, because of my repulsive issues with the album, but also because I believe they have great potential. They are doing something different, and a bunch of kids are enjoying their music. The fact is, it is not for everyone. I suggest getting The Showdown's "Back Breaker", or Haste the Day's "Dreamer" if you want something heavy, but good.
