They say tragedies come in threes. These might not be tragic, but there are three of them. Themes, eh?
Miley - Bass Persuades
Inertia is an interesting concept in the context of music. There are times when artists become so big that it feels inevitable their next song/album will go to the top of the charts no matter what it is. We see that when Taylor Swift releases an album with no advance singles, and it breaks sales records. We've seen it throughout history, as plenty of long-time hitmakers moved up the charts with songs that didn't deserve the acclaim, but got it simply because we were all in the habit of listening to anything they put out.
Then there are people like Miley (sans Cyrus now), who defy the laws of cultural physics. After finally breaking through as an artist instead of a Disney-fied remnant, she put out an album that was of the wrong time, and backslid as though it was the latest dance crazy. That brings us to this album, which wants to be a thumping dance album, but never commits to the exercise. The title track is undoubtedly that, but it's a 'banger' in the same way knocking on the stall to check if the person on the toilet has passed out is. Miley has once again lost feeling for songs that will connect with the audience through the energy and hooks, and this time she rarely sounds interested in her own music.
I know a lot of people didn't like "Flowers", but it was slick, and Miley's voice sold her story. Here, she doesn't get above a whisper very often, which might be protecting the damage her voice has taken, but it robs us of the tone that makes Miley sound like Miley. This album sounds like an album made by someone who misheard Hieronomous Bosch's name as 'anonymous pop'. That is a tortured attempt at a pun, but I swear it was the most fun part of spending 35 minutes thinking about Miley's music.
Anthrax - Cursum Perficio
Speaking of sounding bored, Anthrax has returned with their first new album in a decade. One might think that with that much time spent between albums, and with Charlie Benante having been on the road with 'Pantera' (sorry - they are not Pantera, they just aren't), Anthrax would have more energy than can fit on an album. That would be your first mistake. The second mistake would be to commit to playing the album in full. If you've heard the singles, you've already gotten as much as you need.
The thing about Anthrax is that they were always the most fun band of the Big Four. They didn't take themselves as seriously, and their music wasn't interesting in finding some form of extreme to convince you they were more than just another metal band. That doesn't feel true anymore, with the Latin title and the black metal riffs pointing toward something that doesn't exactly feel like Anthrax as we have known them. What's worse is that the sense of fun is all but gone, replaced with songs filled with basic riffs and lackluster melodies. Joey Belladonna tries his best, but the material is so weak he often sounds as if he is holding notes just to warm up his voice.
It could be read into the title and themes of the record that this is the end, and honestly, the record does sound a bit like an elegy. It wouldn't be as embarrassing as Dave Mustaine ending his career by refusing to let go of his forty year grudge, but it's every bit as bland and forgettable as whatever the last Slayer album was called. That's Anthrax's fate.
Europe - Come This Madness
It was a bit of a shock when I heard "War Of Kings", as all I knew at the time was Europe's cheesier 80s material. That they could convincingly be a Deep Purple inspired 70s rock band was hard to believe, and that they could do it so well was truly remarkable. That record shed a lot of jokes Arrested Development had foisted upon the band, and the follow-up record was nearly as good. Making fun of Europe was no longer as much fun.
This new record doesn't undo all that good, but it does disappoint. The shift isn't drastic, but there's just enough of a tilt back toward the slicker sound of the 80s to change bearings in a worse direction. This is not a full-on return to "The Final Countdown" by any means, but the sound is a bit less organic, and through that a bit less authentic. The extra sheen makes it harder for the songs to cut through, and that's the biggest issue. This record just isn't quite as strong as the last two, and it would be easy to blame that on the production choices. I don't think that is the cause, but correlation and causation often get mixed up.
Like with Anthrax, this is another case where I might be a bit more generous if the gap between albums hadn't been so long. After nine years, I suppose I expect a little more than this.
