Groove, substance and accessible songs; it's a formula that works well.
Better known for 2001's cover of Michael Jackson's 'Smooth Criminal', which reached the dizzy heights of number three on the U.K. singles chart, California's Alien Ant Farm have been treading the boards since 1994 and incredibly still feature three out of the four original members.
This latest opus, the bands fifth, has been a long time in the making being a product of the fan-funded PledgeMusic initiative; the future of music in the wake of major label demise. It began life in May 2013 and the first single 'Let 'Em Know' – a groove orientated Pop affair – first aired shortly afterwards and fans were drip fed with new songs in the form of an EP and second single 'Homage' – a Springsteen-tinged Pop affair – leading up to the album release in February 2015.
As is the normal for Alien Ant Farm, there's an interesting mix of styles, from the aforementioned singles through to the Funky horn-infused looseness of 'Sidelines' and the pure Pop of 'Little Things (Physical)'. Throughout the album vocalist Dryden Mitchell hAlwas never sounded better, he's an underrated front-man if ever there was one. The smaltzy groove of 'Crazy Love' even has something quirky and interesting about it; reminiscent of Bleu in both the vocal and arrangement.
Pop Punk is, in the main, abandoned on 'Always And Forever' and although opener 'Yellow Pages' is the album's hardest Rocking tune, it steers clear of mundane cliché's and sets the stall out for rest of the release which concentrates on groove, substance and accessible songs; it's a formula that works well.
Mike Newdeck
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