American Standards: Anti-Melody (self-released 2017)

[a year has passed by, since the end of April 2017, when American Standards released ‘Anti-Melody’. The album review seems untimely, but we, sawbiz.gr, feel like doing it, as a one-year “anniversary”. And that’s because we communicated with the band back then. Maybe American Standards don’t even remember our communication, but it doesn’t matter at all. The diy attitude of American Standards is a good enough reason to do so]

american_standards_anti-melody      ‘Anti-Melody’ is the longest work of American Standards, so far. Its 25 minutes match for an EP, but its eight songs match for a full-length album. Of course, its content is what counts most. This is the first work of drummer Mitch Hosier with the band.

      American Standards appeared at the beginning of the present decade. Categorizing the group in a specific genre is difficult. ‘Anti-Melody’ is the proof of that. The two-and-a-half minutes of the first song, one of the best in the album, is a ruthless hardcore punk hammering, witch includes metalcore notes. Things change in the following two songs, since American Standards are using noise and metal melodies. The ability of the group in changing rhythms is extraordinary. Mathcore and progressive elements explode and before the ear adapts, the hardcore attack is on its way again. So, we reach one of the greatest songs of ‘Anti-Melody’, ‘Bartenders Without Wings’. Reminding the style of Murder City Devils, the song unleashes a heartbreaking sentimentalism. ‘Danger Music #9’ that follows, returns our brain to the raw reality of American Standards‘ music, allowing the deeply personal ‘Cancer Eater’ to come. The early death of the frontman’s father is the subject of the song. Through its wild guitar riff, Brandon Kellum expresses all his rage and feeling of injustice, because of this unfortunate event. It isn’t strange that this particular song is one of the album highlights. The next target of American Standards is their country’s society. ‘Broken Culture”s lyrics, guitar and bass demolish anything that stands. The end of the album comes with ‘Chicago Overcoat’. The six-minute slow tempo becomes increasingly sinister, as seconds pass by. Especially during the second half of the song, the frontman’s screams are chilling, before the sad piano sounds complete the album.

Author: Fedon Kytridis

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