How would you describe the majesty of the Grand Canyon in Arizona to someone who has never been there? How could you ever articulate the wonder of seeing an aurora in the Arctic Circle? If you’ve ever tried to explain an amazing experience to someone and not known what to say, you will understand my conundrum as I try to put into words my feelings about Animals As Leaders' new release, The Joy of Motion. I’m incredibly excited for you to hear this album.
I’ve been a fan of Tosin Abasi since his days playing with PSI and Reflux in the early to mid-2000s. The first self-titled Animals As Leaders album was released by Prosthetic Records as a way to showcase Abasi’s talent, and it delivers on this goal. It also plays like a demo reel, jumping from solo to solo and riff to riff without much focus on songwriting or structure. The second Animals As Leaders release Weightless featured Abasi playing with fellow prog and jazz virtuoso Javier Reyes, both on eight-string guitars. The programmed drumming was dropped in favor of real, actual drums played by Animosity and Fleshwrought madman Navene Koperweis. Weightless is a milder album with a tinge of electronica flavor. On 2014’s The Joy of Motion Abasi returns to his metal roots, and Reyes and drummer Matt Garstka provide not only support but a voice of their own.
The album opens with the monstrously heavy ‘Ka$cade’. The Meshuggah-esque djent riffs and offbeat timing tell you that Animals As Leaders are going to take you on a ride. The second track ‘Lippincott’ is all over the map. It starts with a smooth guitar lead and what sounds like a backing bass line, but isn’t. Both Abasi and Reyes play eight-string guitars on The Joy of Motion but they tune down so slow and play with such proficiency that you think there’s a bass there the whole time. Periphery’s Adam Getgood does make an appearance on the bass guitar at times, and Misha Mansoor returns for production duties and plays some seven-string guitar. The connection between Animals As Leaders and Periphery can be heard throughout.
The album progresses with ‘Air Chrysalis’, a smooth and jazzy piece that transitions to a prog jam about halfway through. The modern jazz influence continues on the opening of ‘Another Year’. This is one my favorites riffs on the album. I find myself humming it randomly throughout the day and it always makes me smile. ‘Physical Education’ is a chunky, choppy affair with some sweet harmonies. Garstka rides the china cymbal and oh boy does it make you bob your head. ‘Tooth and Claw’ throws you back into the heavy djent riffing but gives you a breather at about the 2:35 mark, followed by some retro 8-bit programming at 3:05. The whole album is perfectly balanced with these moments of intensity followed by quieter lulls that gently massage your ears so they are ready for the next bit of oddly timed technical prowess.
‘Crescent’ features some of Abasi’s signature slap technique, which conjures comparisons to Victor Wooten in its speed and precision. ‘The Future That Awaited Me’ opens with a dreamscape of layered sound and carries you away to a fantasy world that is edged by shadow. ‘Para Mexer’ has a bit of Spanish guitar flavor and a distortion-free breakdown in the middle. It then drifts quietly off into a misty red-orange sunset. Abasi shows off some more finger-flying slap on ‘The Woven Web’. The second to last track ‘Mind = Spun’ does that very thing, laying down the heaviness, some slides, wicked djent riffs and pounding drums. In fact, all of the songs are perfectly titled to reflect the feelings they are trying to convey. It’s a smart way to assist listeners as they journey through this instrumental work without lyrics or vocals. The record ends with ‘Nephele’, a perfect mixture of the sounds and styles that are represented on the whole recording.
I’m not going to say that The Joy of Motion is as grand an experience as taking in the Grand Canyon or an aurora, but I certainly cannot say that it isn’t on par with those moments. The raw ability and technical skill Abasi always displayed has finally been coupled with excellent songwriting and solid production to create a record that is truly an experience you have to have for yourself. The Joy of Motion is what I always wanted Animals As Leaders to be: breathtaking skill combined with beautiful, heavy songwriting to create soundscapes you can lose yourself in.
