The band has made a deliberate attempt to shift their lyrical focus away from politics and society, towards the more abstract ideas surrounding the human condition: the development of consciousness, ideas of supernatural fear, enemies, desire, and tribalism. The opening lyric is "I did what anybody would that day, No speechless gibbon in the road, Not me" and sets up the tone of the record perfectly. To accompany the more cerebral themes, the instrumentation has been toned down. These tracks are far less over the top and manic, and feel simpler and more stark. I understand that it will be a turn off to some fans, as singing along to some batshit lyrics to a super fun poppy groove is a big part of the band's appeal; and even the singles from the record aren't particularly catchy in that way. But for me, the more minimalist approach is a nice change of pace that allows the more conceptual themes room to breathe and sink in.
The opener, Lost Powers, sounds like the grand awakening the opening lyric suggests. The simple chiming guitar and drums slowly give way to more elaborate instrumentation. It sounds like some kind of daybreak as the world slowly becomes more illuminated. Big Climb tackles the uncontrollable desire for excess that seems to drive so many people, backed by a more aggressive glitchy beat and harsher more staccato vocals from Higgs. It Was A Monstering and Moonlight are about as straight up Radiohead-worship as the band has ever been (and the last record, A Fever Dream, had some very Radiohead-y moments), and the first of those is actually a pretty good attempt. The krautrock-ian, rigid drums and dark, hollow guitar tones would fit in perfectly on Amnesiac. Higgs even does a really good Thom Yorke impersonation. The descending guitar lines and sinister hook melody are really good. I especially like the switched up bridge of the track. It's a really well constructed song, even if it's influences are obvious. Moonlight, on the other hand calls back to some of the more serene Radiohead ballads such as Nude. Its not bad, but doesn't quite come together into something particularly distinct for me.
The middle of the record is where it goes on its biggest run, starting with the single Arch Enemy. This track is about as close as the record comes to the band's big pop singles of the past, with its squelchy synth-funk groove and bizarre lyrics comparing an enemy to a fatberg that attaches itself to you. It is the wackiest and most fun song on the album. Lord of the Trapdoor focuses around the ideas of tribalism and 'otherness', built around a really simple and stripped back beat and stark, chiming guitar which just descends into a ferocious, heavily distorted guitar solo that tears up the back half of the song as the track falls into madness. The beat on the following song, Black Hyena, is this super snappy and prangy loop that sounds like something you'd find on a Massive Attack album which gives the song a unique flavour within the EE discography. The lyrics are really sinister, seemingly alluding to personality changes following perhaps brain damage, or maybe just a traumatic event in general - they're pretty abstract.
However, RE-ANIMATOR is certainly the least consistent record since the group's debut. Early on in the record, the single Planets is the first sign of trouble. The track is perfectly listenable, but feels like a one trick pony with its long, slow-burn verses that slowly build up through the chorus towards a spiralling post-chorus synth line. It's the only thing the track has up it's sleeve and it gets old fast. Towards the end of the album, the songs In Birdsong and The Actor also have some crippling flaws that ruin the entire tracks for me. In Birdsong is a linear, building ballad that sounds ethereal and profound; and the track at the core of it is fairly good. But as the track builds in intensity and volume, the entire mix becomes more and more tinny and compressed. It's obviously an intentional artistic choice, but it sounds really unbearable. Likewise, on The Actor, the group go so completely overboard on the reversed vocal effects that it's incredibly distracting and kills any enjoyment I might've got from an already not that impressive song.
The band do save the best cut on the record for last, being the blistering new wave throwback of Violent Sun. The pummelling drums, whining guitar leads, and overwhelming vocal delivery just commands you to feel something. It's really good, and really powerful with the simple message of 'it's okay to feel like you don't understand, or that the world is overwhelmingly confusing and scary'.
RE-ANIMATOR is a good album, if slightly underwhelming when compared to Arc, A Fever Dream, and especially Get To Heaven. I appreciate that the band took risks with their sound, and when the play out, they result in some really good songs. It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea, especially if you came to the band for their whacky, up-tempo singles. It's certainly an album which grew on me with time though, so don't just write it off on first listen.
Top Tracks: Lost Powers, It Was A Monstering, Arch Enemy, Lord Of The Trapdoor, Black Hyena, Violent Sun
7/10
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