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Welcome To Unbound Zine |
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| Album Review |
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Candiria-What Doesn't Kill You...
(Type A, 2004)
Candiria are back with a new album that shows the band stripping down and coming out with their most powerful and memorable album yet. The band is still heavy and technical, but the songs are much more structured and things just flow much better now.
Long time fans might be a bit let down by the lack of diversity. The music is still technical but the band mainly sticks to their heavy guns. There is one rap song and the closing instrumental throws a curveball, but you won't find any jazz songs, or strange interludes. Just mainly heavy riffs, breakdowns and for the first time extremely catchy choruses. The vocals are also much more melodic at times, which adds a lot of diversity to the music. They really seem to be coming into their style with this new album. They have always been an original band, but this album really nails down the Candiria sound.
In the past the band has sort of been a musician's band. A lot of people just don't get the technical nature of bands like this. With this album they really manage to keep things interesting and explore weird timings, but the riffs still manage to be memorable. They now sound like integral parts of the songs and don't sound like technical exercises. It's one of the reasons why Meshugah is still such a boring band. They stay technical but don't manage to be catchy at all. Candiria don't have that same problem. They are heavy, technical, and still very memorable.
I think this album shows the next logical step for the band and with the more streamlined approach Candiria will probably make the biggest impact of their career thus far with this album.
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UN: It’s been two years since “The Outer Dark.” Do you feel like there has been a progression in between albums? Did you guys take more time with this album?
Mike(guitar/vocals):YES, WE ALWAYS STRIVE FOR PROGRESSION. THERE IS A LOT MORE EXPERIMENTING WITH "MELODY" ON THIS RECORD AS WELL AS SOME MUSICAL FREEDOM THAT HASN'T BEEN PRESENT ON THE OTHER RELEASES.
UN: “Lifetime of Gray Skies” marks the bands debut release for Level-Plane. What brought about the jump from Escape Artist to Level-Plane?
Mike(guitar/vocals): LEVEL PLANE RUNS THINGS IN A MORE INTENSE MANNER THAN WE'VE EXPERIENCED IN THE PAST. THEY ALSO HAVE DISTRIBUTION THROUGH MORDAM, WHO TOTALLY RULE.
UN: “Lifetime of Gray Skies” is a fairly bleak album name. Would you say it’s a representation of the bands outlook on life?
Mike(guitar/vocals): I CAN ONLY SPEAK FOR MYSELF. I WRITE ALL OF THE LYRICS AND IN THIS CASE, DEVELOPED THE ALBUM TITLE. THIS IS CERTAINLY HOW I FEEL; I'M NOT SURE IF THE OTHER GUYS SHARE THE SAME OUTLOOK. IT HAS MORE TO DO WITH CERTAIN TRENDS IN MY LIFE THAT I'VE OBSERVED AS I REFLECT BACK ON THE LAST FEW YEARS. WE WENT INTO PRE-PRODUCTION FOR THE RECORD IN DECEMBER; TYPICALLY, WHEN THE YEAR IS WINDING DOWN, I LOOK BACK ON EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENED TO ME AND SORT OF ASSESS THINGS.
UN: For all the darkness though, there has to be a positive. When the three of you get together and play it must be a rewarding experience. Would you consider the band catharsis?
Mike(guitar/vocals): AT THIS POINT, REHEARSING, TOURING AND RECORDING IS THE ONLY THING KEEPING ME GOING. ALL I HAVE IS A ROOM WITH FOUR WALLS TO STARE AT. THERE IS NOTHING ELSE. THE THIRTY MINUTES OR SO THAT WE GET TO PLAY ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS IN MY LIFE.
UN: I would say Anodyne’s approach to songwriting is linear. You don’t use the usual structures, more so moving from riff to riff. Is it important to break the rules of conventional songwriting?
Mike(guitar/vocals): WE JUST WANT TO EXPRESS OURSELVES FREELY. WE NEVER REALLY SET OUT TO "BREAK THE RULES"; WE JUST DEVELOPED OUT THING AND TRIPPED OUT ON IT.
UN: Do you think that there are a few new elements present on the new album? It seems like a bit more diverse of an album.
Mike(guitar/vocals): DEFINITELY. THERE'S MORE "MELODY" ON THIS ONE THAN ON PAST RECORDINGS. ALSO, WE HAD ENOUGH TIME TO EXPERIMENT WITH TEXTURES.
UN: Would you say that it’s important to show the more technical side of the bands? Certain riffs are just insane while others are a bit more stripped down. It is important to push yourselves as musicians?
Mike(guitar/vocals): ALWAYS. PERSONALLY, I THINK THAT PUSHING YOUR SELF DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN PLAYING THE MOST TECHNICAL, CRAZY STUFF ALL OF THE TIME. IT ALWAYS COMES DOWN TO WRITING GOOD SONGS WITH HOOKS OTHERWISE IT JUST DEVOLVES INTO A MASTURBATION SESSION. THERE ARE PLENTY OF INTENSELY TECHNICAL BANDS LIKE KING CRIMSON AND YES THAT ARE MIND-BLOWING ON A MUSICIAN LEVEL. YOU CAN'T BEAT ROBERT FRIPP WHEN IT COMES TO SHEER ABILITY, BUT WHAT SETS HIM APART IS HIS ABILITY TO WRITE GREAT SONGS.
UN: Would you say the band really comes across in a live setting? The new album has a very live sound so it’s not hard to imagine the newer songs in a live setting.
Mike(guitar/vocals): WE DIG TOURING, SO YEAH, THE LIVE TRIP IS WHERE IT'S AT FOR US. RECORDING RECORDS IS COOL, BUT ROCKING OUT WITH YOUR GEAR ON "10" IS THE BEST.
UN: This is just out of curiosity, what exactly does the name Anodyne mean?
Mike(guitar/vocals): ANODYNE MEANS PAIN-KILLER.
UN: How do you gauge success with a band like Anodyne? Obviously you guys are too extreme for mainstream success, but there is definitely an audience out there for this style. Are you guys making a living off of the band yet?
Mike(guitar/vocals): NOT EVEN CLOSE DUDE. I SUPPOSE SUCCESS IS MEASURED BY WHETHER OR NOT WE GET OFF ON OUR MUSIC OR NOT.
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