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ANVIL
One And Only
AFM Records
https://www.facebook.com/anvilmetal

Sometimes I think that Canadian Heavy Metal act ANVIL is playing a joke on Heavy Metal fans. How can a band that has been around for 40 years, and has written and released 20 studio albums, still sound like they are amateurs just getting started? At the same time, I think that's what actually draws eyes and ears to the group.

While some may refer to ANVIL's heyday as the '80s, they were really just a footnote in the Heavy Metal world. It wasn't until the release of the 2008 documentary Anvil! The Story of Anvil, that people started taking a second look at the group.

It wasn't necessarily for their music, but more for their determination to keep at it, in light of the fact there was little interest in the group fan wise or business wise. ANVIL mainstays drummer Robb Reiner and guitarist/vocalist Steve "Lips" Kudlow truly believed (after 25+ years) their 'big break' was just around the corner. You couldn't help but root for them in the documentary.

ANVIL has gone on to release 7 albums since that documentary. One And Only was released on June 28, 2024. Getting back to ANVIL playing a joke on us, the album's title track kicks off the album and the lyrics are loaded with irony. The anthemic song has Kudlow explaining how you need to be original and not a carbon copy.

Speaking of carbon copies, "Feed Your Fantasy" is sure to get stuck in your brain as there are very few lyrics beyond the song's title, which is repeated 16 times. "Fight For Your Rights" appears to be quite personal. Kudlow takes on the music industry and how it has negatively impacted ANVIL over the years.

"Gold And Diamonds" is another song with very few lyrics. I can't argue that it's not direct and to the point. I mean, why write a song metaphorically using the theme of gold and diamonds, when you can write a song about actual gold and actual diamonds and how they were discovered and used over the years.

"Dead Man Shoes" treads Punk Rock territory with frantic riffs and pounding drums. This one might be the best track on the album, despite it repeating the lyric pattern of the aforementioned "Feed Your Fantasy". "Rocking The World" has potential to be a great sing-along live performance track.

By "World of Fools", you become numb to the album's theme of just repeating the song's title 4x as the only words in the chorus section. "Condemned Liberty" is a dark and heavy track that deals with cancel culture.

"Lips" Kudlow has admitted that since the ANVIL documentary, there has been a rush to get out a new album every couple of years, and the fun of it all has dwindled. You can hear that for yourself on the album One And Only. It's clear that there wasn't a whole lot of time and effort put behind the music. Of course, that's not exactly something unexpected from ANVIL going back to 1981.

ANVIL is like a bad car crash. You have to slow down and take a look at the carnage, but then you drive past it and go on with your day. Two years later when another crash comes along, you take a quick peek to see how different it was from the last one. The question remains, is ANVIL a parody of Heavy Metal bands or a parody of themselves?

3.0 Out Of 5.0