Vital might be the best title possible for this record. This record is vital on all accounts – for the band, and for the fans. It’s what fans have been waiting for since Cities, or possibly even Never Take Friendship Personal. Why is this the case? Read on.
Never Take Friendship Personal cemented Anberlin into a reputation of being able to craft the perfect blend of pop and aggression, while Cities took that arguably to the next level with what most fans consider to be the band’s magnum opus. A label change and lots of pressure to succeed in the mainstream world resulted in New Surrender, the most polarizing album they released. The angst built up during the recording process of New Surrender ultimately led to the good but not-really-classifiable-in-the-discography Dark is the Way, Light is a Place. The band enjoyed its widest success, buoyed by hits like “Feel Good Drag” and “Impossible” but longtime fans, though satisfied, were left scratching their heads wondering when that magic would return. Vital has that magic, but the band needed to travel via the writing of New Surrender and Dark… to get there.
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The record leads with “Self-Starter.” Whoa, now. This may be the biggest song the band has ever started a record with. “Self-Starter” is pure adrenaline, one of those songs that couldn’t possibly be played too loud. “Little Tyrants” isn’t quite as full of adrenaline, but we get some nice gang vocals in the bridge and climax of the song. “Other Side” has what’s probably the most interesting intro on the record, and “Someone Anyone” is your quintessential Anberlin song – one that would fit right alongside “A Day Late” or “Hello Alone.” The new wave influence begins to emerge in full force with a synth-laden hook in “Intentions” and a hint of this is still present in ballad “Innocent.” The latter is quite the opposite of older ballads “The Unwinding Cable Car” or “Inevitable.” If anything, it could be a cousin to “Symphony of Blase” or, dare I say it, the much abhorred “Younglife” from New Surrender. “Desires” wakes us back up with a riff so heavy that one might think for a second that iTunes shuffled off Anberlin to Chevelle. The balance of the album is midtempo goodness in the vein of what we’ve heard so far, but the standout is ending power ballad “God, Drugs and Sex.” Admittedly, I wasn’t a fan of this one at first. Typically, I do not gravitate toward sad, emotional songs. But, as if being beckoned by some unknown force, I returned again and again to this song that I didn’t like on first listen until my opinion changed.
Is this an album of the year contender? You better believe it. There’s so much going on at times that there was a very real risk of sounding overindulgent, but thankfully this was avoided in the best way. One last thing, all of the b-sides offered in various retail outlets are gems in their own right too.
Score: 5/5
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