a recent review

[wayne gretzky]

SOURCE: 411mania.com
From the ashes of Stone Temple Pilots and Filter comes Army of Anyone. Does this highly anticipated debut record live up to the hype?



From the ashes of Stone Temple Pilots and Filter, Army of Anyone rises like the proverbial phoenix. The latest rock “supergroup” in a seemingly growing trend, features ex-Filter frontman, Richard Patrick on vocal duties. Patrick is backed by; perhaps the most underrated melody makers in rock music in the past 30 years, Dean and Robert Deleo of Stone Temple Pilots fame, on guitar and bass respectively. Behind the drum kit, sits Ray Luzier, of David Lee Roth’s band. The debut record from Army of Anyone was eagerly anticipated by fans of Filter and STP. As for myself, STP has been my favorite band for over a decade now, and readers of my weekly news report know that I’ve been salivating to get my hands on this record. So, does the debut of AoA live up to the hype? How does this new endeavor for the musical veterans stack up against the other “supergroups”?

Upon first listen, you’ll find that the album sounds exactly like you think it would, a balanced amalgamation of Filter and STP. It’s almost frightening how much it sounds like both bands were put in a blender and out this CD came out, however there is a bit of a surprise, especially to a cynical bastard like myself. The surprise is that it sounds so much better then I could have anticipated. The musical composition created by the Deleo brothers is nothing short of phenomenal. The album is rife with incredible melody and hooks and the make for some damn catchy tunes. Dean Deleo’s guitar work on this record just reaffirms my position that Dean is the single most underrated guitarist of our time.

As far as songwriting goes, the album does pretty well for itself. Richard Patrick honed his songwriting with each passing Filter album and with AoA, you can see that growth once again. Although at times, I hear Patrick almost stretching himself, trying to sound like Weiland on songs like It Doesn't Seem to Matter and Stop Look and Listen. AoA lacks the industrial tinge, and heaviness that accompanied Filter, those two things are replaced with melody and musical arrangement, a nice trade off in my opinion. Patrick seems to adjust nicely and keeps up with the Deleos very well.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Ray Luzier work on the drums. Luzier does a tremendous job, and adds a certain amount of energy to the music. As the less familiar face in the group Luzier won’t have to face the critiques or companions of past work as much as the other three, but to be honest, he does great and is an excellent addition to a stellar lineup.

And now for the bad. The album is great at what it is, a showcase for excellent musicians creating beautiful melodic music in a era where whiny and screaming seem to be the norm. What Army of Anyone does not do is spread their wings. The band keeps it where their comfortable, without taking any chances. The Deleos know their strong suit and stick to it, Patrick knows his range, vocally and lyrically, and keeps it there. No one leaves their comfort zone, while it sounds amazing; it’s not breaking any new ground.

The 411: One of the best records of the year. This debut displays the best parts of Stone Temple Pilots and Filter, with musicianship that is bar-none and nearly epic vocals. With very few flaws, Army of Anyone is the current cream of the crop in the world of “supergoups” and surpasses all expectations. Highly recommended.
IPB Image
Final Score: 9.0 [ Amazing ]

[The Action Girls]

I have to say this guy definitely hit the nail on the head with this review. I couldn't have said it better myself. Though I think he could've credited Ray's work a little more specifically, it was still a great review.

[MC.]

Definately a pretty accurate review. Especially the point about how they "stayed in their comfort zones". The 9.0 rating is higher then i've seen most reviewers give for this album, so it's a pleasant suprise.

Haha, I like how he said "amalgamation".

[STPGurl]

Do you think that people that write reviews like that are embarassed two years later, after the band miserable fails, and they read something like this:

With very few flaws, Army of Anyone is the current cream of the crop in the world of “supergoups” and surpasses all expectations. Highly recommended.

lmao.  I do.

[MC.]

I don't see why he would be embarassed. He didn't say they were going to be huge, he didn't say their album would go platinum. All he said was that they were a good, and the fact that they disbanded and didn't achieve mainstream popularity has no bearing on that.

[loungefly611]

Let the gushfest continue  

[StoneTempleBrett]

hahaha I know, I don't get your guys obsession with a mediocre and uninspired, and not to mention defunct, Stone Temple Pilots side project.

[stpnj2008]

Really accurate review i.m.o, it's great to see Dean's playing receive the proper recognition it deserves.

After finally getting my hands on the album last week, I have to say that I like it a whole lot. The Deleo's wrote some killer melodies,  & I think Richard sang really well on the album. How the band was received commerically doesn't do the album justice.

[MC.]

How the band was received commerically doesn't do the album justice.

I completely agree. It was really The Firm's fault, they did a horrible job of promoting the band.

[The Action Girls]

They did an extremely bad job of promoting such an incredible band. Though at the time, it seemed like a fantastic idea to be on your management team's record label (more support), but it just fell apart during the process.

It seems the only reason band-street teams are ever started is because the band's management or record label gave up on promoting. My theory anyways.

[StoneTempleBrett]

Even with more promotion they'd never had been big.  I played AoA for quite a few people and nobody liked it.  The only song that sounded like a single was Goodbye, and the lyrics were pretty shitty.  No other song on the album could have charted.  There's no way AoA were going to succeed commercially.  People were tired of supergroups by late 2006 and the album was not memorable enough to grab much attention.

[The Action Girls]

Even with more promotion they'd never had been big.

We don't know that. And I guess we'll never actually know. Unless...

[MC.]

"A Better Place" would have made a great single.

[VelvetLounngeFly]

AOA wasnt uninspired or mediocre these musicians got together for a reason not just to make a buck cuz they obviously didnt care about how successful it was. people just have the fact that these are member from stp and filter, this is an STP forum. if aoa were just regular guys and it was a brand new band and all again i doubt it would have done anything cuz of the music scene but people wouldnt bash them as much specially stp fans, their music isnt bad but theres just something missing it sounds rushed not mediocre or uninspiring. a song like stop look and listen is beautifully arranged if it was scott singing ppl would be like oh my god its so great!! bottom line is im not an aoa fan but i can say they were a good band when it comes to them reuniting....i wouldnt care, i wouldnt care if any of them did anything outside STP i think its great when they have time off and do things like that i mean more music and more material which is cool, if they reunited and came around i wouldnt buy a ticket but i'd would like to see it.

[wickedgarden23]

they obviously didnt care about how successful it was.

I'm not an AOA hater, but how can you say that? It seems that it was the exact opposite. They released one album that failed to even sell 100,000 copies and they broke up like a year after it came out. I'm not saying that the guys in AOA ONLY care about being successful, but the album's poor sales definitely had to do with their break-up.