A review of Annihilator's discography - Second part: The middle years: 2000 - 2014

Ladies and gentlemen,

About a year ago, I presented you an article covering the releases of Annihilator's early years. Now is the time to take a look at the middle years of Ottawa's most famous band. This article covers all records released between 2000 and 2014 by the charismatic thrash metal band around guitarist Jeff Waters. Each record will be described and reviewed in a detailed manner. Cover artworks and songs from each album will be presented. Finally, I will suggest you my fifteen personal favorite songs released by the band during the fifteen years covered by this article. Enjoy and discover this fascinating but often overlooked local product!

Carnival Diablos (2001)

Horrid start leading to an excellent evolution

Carnival Diablos is a big step forward for Annihilator after the disappointing Criteria for a Black Widow that failed to succeed at its attempt to go back to the band's early years. This is due to Jeff Water's new-found creative song writing in particular. Drummer Ray Hartmann does a very decent job but nothing more. The same could be said about new singer Joe Comeau's raw vocals reminding me of a mixture of meaner versions of Brian Johnson and Tim Owens at times. The new frontman sounds energetic and motivated but is clearly lacking in the skills departement and doesn't really manage to stand out positively or negatively. Aside of a few exception, this has often been the case in Annihilator's career. If the band had had a more charismatic and stable lead singer, they could have had an even bigger career in my book.

Carnival Diablos is an album that gets better from start to finish. The first three opening tracks don't give me much and offer more of the aggressive modern thrash metal sound practiced on the vapid predecessor. Start-stop riffs meet angry vocals and aren't a far call away from Pantera and the likes. Maybe the band tried to attract an angrier and younger audience here in the beginning of the millennium but Jeff Waters simply wastes his talent trying to sound like Pantera or Limp Bizkit.

Things get better with the title song ''Carnival Diablos'', a much calmer and moodier track with haunting vocal lines and melancholic guitar harmonies. From that moment on, Annihilator delivers the goods and offers a diversified yet energizing record. The gloomy ''Time Bomb'' recalls the kind of music Judas Priest played back in those days, ''Insomniac'' might be the album's most diversified song with haunting calmer passages but also aggressive up-beat sections and ''Epic of War'' is a successful attempt at bringing the horrors of warfare to our ears. The group even offers a more than solid classic hard rock track called ''Shallow Grave'' that could please to older and more traditional listeners. An underrated highlight is the melancholic instrumental tune ''Liquid Oval'' that proves that Annihilator doesn't even need its exchangeable lead singers to convince. The humorous hidden track ''Chicken and Corn'' also comes as a pleasant surprise because it closes an overall rather sinister and aggressive record on a light-hearted and silly note. It's great to see that the band didn't take itself too seriously after all. 

If Annihilator had cut down its modern thrash metal tendencies focusing on aggressiveness rather than clever songwriting in the first three tunes, Carnival Diablos would be one of the group's most diversified, entertaining and inspired records ever. Even though the record is missing a clear guideline, it offers a musical rollercoaster ride that is both inspired and entertaining. Despite the three flawed opening tracks, this record is worth your attention, money and time if you care for well-crafted thrash metal with a handful of successful minor experiments.

Final rating: 78%

Waking the Fury (2002)

Wake me up when the album has ended

Waking the Fury is the second and last studio album featuring singer Joe Comeau and while the predecessor Carnival Diablos was a quite diversified, fresh and inspired record, this album has a more streamlined and coherent guideline. Waking the Fury offers fast modern thrash metal with a lot of distorted guitar sounds. While Jeff Waters' lead guitar play comes around with a few good melodies, the rhythm guitar is exchangeable and generic, the rhythm section doesn't add anything to the sound and Joe Comeau's raw vocals always sound the same. That being said, the album was only recorded by three musicians, the other two guys on the cover that seem to suggest that Annihilator has actually become a band again and isn't a solo project anymore are two musicians who briefly joined the group after the recording sessions and didn't stay for a longer period of time like so many others before and after them.

Aside of a few isolated moments, Waking the Fury is a tiring, repetitive and predictable album with a digitalized and dry production that induces headaches. It's literally just fast and aggressive without offering anything remotely memorable. Don't get me wrong, I like fast thrash metal but Annihilator doesn't have Anthrax's lust for life, Kreator's intuition for developing a gloomy atmosphere, Over Kill's raw attitude or anything else that could be described as just remotely outstanding. The term ''soulless'' describes that album perfectly. The only slightly outstanding song is the hard rock track ''Nothing to Me'' due to its genre shift but even that song itself is only a weak copy of ''Shallow Grave'' from the predecessor which was nothing but an AC/DC tribute like there are thousands all around the world already. 

If you want generic aggressiveness with a modern production, you might dig this album. Anyone who likes something more refined and wants to admire Jeff Waters' undeniable skills on the guitar should skip this uninspired output that might be among, if not the worst record of the Canadians. It's beyond me how this release got so much praise from fans and critics alike but I don't buy into this. In the end, this album is a furious and remarkable as Ottawa Fury FC, which means it almost doesn't stick out at all. My recommendation is to pick up Carnival Diablos and ignore this release.

Final rating: 30%

All for You (2004)

Alternative metal with old and new school elements

Yes, I know, All for You isn't a thrash metal album and could rather be described as a diversified alternative metal release. Some people might call it nu metal or mallcore and I wouldn't even disagree. It's true that Annihilator sounds softer and more commercial than before on said album and might have had the intention to jump on the bandwagon. There are indeed obvious influences from then-popular radio rock bands from Matchbox Twenty to System of a Down. It's also true that this record's productions includes a few too many effects and is overtly gimmicky.

However, I have three reasons to not only like this record but to think that this is actually one of Annihilator's better records. First of all, the previous release Waking the Fury had sounded absolutely uninspired, repetitive and overproduced in my book and the band simply needed a change at that point. This has happened on All for You. As a matter of fact, Jeff Waters had moved back to his hometown Ottawa after the last release and this change might have had a positive impact on his band. New singer Dave Padden might not be the greatest performer from a technical point of view but he sings with conviction and a lot of heart. He gives us aggressive shouts, a few modern metal grunts and some melodic and mellow vocals and he does a fairly decent job in all categories in my book. He clearly is Annihilator's most variable singer. Another new member on this album is Mike Mangini and even though he doesn't always show what he is capable of as one of the greatest drummers in the business, he still delivers a solid job. Jeff Waters has finally found some new inspiration himself instead of rehashing thrash riffs from the past he had already used dozens of times. From laid back melodic lines over slow-paced distorted leads to up-beat modern thrash metal riffs, the guitar play on this album never repeats itself and comes around with a balanced mixture of new surprises and a few old trademarks. You can still hear that this is definitely an Annihilator record despite a few fluffier tunes.

Secondly, as I already pointed out before, All for You isn't only diverse and entertaining but actually succeeds in redefining and revamping Annihilator's sound. We get a few slices of Annihilator's weakness for twisted songs about mental diseases like the quite vivid ''Both of Me'' and ''Demon Dance'' that go back to the styles and topics of songs like ''Alison Hell'' and ''Brain Dance'' in a successful way. The band also delivers some appeasing and emotional campfire ballads with ''The One'' and ''Holding On'' that aren't a far call from memorable tunes like ''Phoenix Rising'' and ''It's You''. We also have some completely new soundscapes like the surprising ''The Nightmare Factory'' that sounds like a brainchild of System of a Down and King Diamond and that convinces atmospherically, intellectually and technically. Even the often criticized opener and title track ''All for You'' is a quite courageous experiment as it mixes mellower tracks in the key of Annihilator's ballads with vivid alternative rock sounds that could from a band like Weezer and even though this approach might sound weird at first contact, it actually sounds coherent end genuinely enjoyable to me. The fact that the band opened the record with such a controversial tune is a sign that Annihilator was finally read to give a damn about expectations and take a risky step forward not despite but because of a more modern sound. The opener is definitely a statement and emotional reactions proved that it succeeded at what it tried to accomplish.

Thirdly, you can clearly hear that the band enjoyed itself while recording this album and that there was an instant chemistry between the different members which also explains why Dave Padden ended up staying much longer with the band than any other singer before. You can actually hear the band members joking around at the end of ''Demon Dance'' and this doesn't sound staged at all. The band members felt free to experiment a lot on this album which can only work if everyone involved is creatively involved and has an open-minded attitude. While some might misinterpret this record's diversity as being headless, the band's new-found creativity, energy and passion really keep the album together. For the first time in a decade, Annihilator actually sounds like a band again and not like a solo project and this fact gives a whole new dimension and soul to this output. 

If you have the mindset that Annihilator records most be powerful thrash metal records, you obviously won't enjoy this record but Annihilator has been there numerous times before and you could just listen to King of the Kill and Waking the Fury all over again. If you actually like alternative metal from bands such as System of a Down and the likes and have grown up in the late nineties or in the first decade of the new millennium, you will discover a record that successfully unites elements of past and present in a very refreshing way. The only reasons why this album didn't get a better rating is because some vocal passages sound auto-tuned or at least overtly effect-ridden and because there isn't a song that really sticks out on this consistent high-quality effort. Still, anyone who would like to discover a vivid mixture of old and new school metal elements should ignore the traditionalists' predictable complaints and give this release a fair chance.

Final rating: 80%

Schizo Deluxe (2005)

Old and new mixed in incoherent ways

After the diversified alternative metal output All for You that received a lot of negative criticism, Annihilator takes a step back on Schizo Deluxe and opts for a more traditional groove metal release in the key of Waking the Fury. 

This album offers numerous chugging riffs, dry and fast drum passages, unspectacular bass lines and angrily shouted vocals. From time to time, the clinical sound is interrupted with modern metralcore experiments or psychedelic melodic breaks that are so charismatic for Annihilator's early years and especially for the songs about mental diseases. However, the combination of fast-paced groove metal soundscapes and melodic breaks often sounds incoherent as in the odd ''Plasma Zombies''.

It doesn't help that Jeff Waters starts to copy himself instead of trying out something new as on the last output. The pitiless and fast ''Drive'' is a potent track but the opening riff is an obvious variation of the main riff of ''King of the Kill'' without reaching the groovy catchiness of the original. ''Invite It'' comes around with incoherent changes in style meandering between weird slightly shouted spoken-word efforts, low clean perfromances and regular melodic clean vocals but all those variations can't hide the fact that numerous parts of the song directly rip off ''Brain Dance''. ''Pride'' has a similar issue since it tries to fit numerous different songwriting approaches and ideas into five minutes but ends up sounding all over the place while the main riff that heavily borrows from ''Ultra Motion'' painfully tries to keep the song together.

However, there are still a few potent tracks on this output. The explosive opener ''Maximum Satan'' kicks the record off with a bang. The gloomy, hypnotizing and melodic ''Clare'' might go back to several Annihilator records lyrically but the more streamlined alternative metal musicianship in the key of Drowning Pool and the likes is at the pulse of time and could have gotten the band some radio airplay if this song had been one or two minutes shorter. The closing ''Something Witchy'' might once again be too experimental for its own good but includes Dave Padden's most diversified and passionate vocal performance on the record and never gets boring in its surprisingly coherent oddness that goes back to efforts like ''Brain Dance''. 

In the end, Schizo Deluxe is a quite average Annihilator record. It's neither among the band's greatest releases nor among its most disappointing outputs. The album won't grow on you either and might actually get more redundant as time goes by. This release is only interesting for completionists and truly faithful fans. Anyone else might only consider picking this record up for a fairly reduced price but it certainly isn't worth its full price as it offers too much filler material. I would suggest you to skip this effort if you are a new or occasional fan.

Final rating: 51%

Metal (2007)

Jamming with friends

The idea to record an album with numerous colleagues and even friends to display different metal genres isn't exactly new but it isn't a bad thought if the project is executed properly. Sadly, Annihilator's Metal wastes a lot of potential and is ultimately slightly below average.

Let's start with the positives first. For a record involving so many guest musicians and singers, Metal sounds surprisingly coherent and fluid. The overall style could be described as alternative metal since the ten tracks display thrash but mostly groove metal with a modern and clinical production and a few modern sound effects. The record is a logical consequence of Annihilator's previous outputs with a similar sound and this record's successor that would also have a similar approach. Despite all the outside influences, Metal is definitely recognizable as an Annihilator album and Jeff Waters' skilled guitar play still stands out among everyone involved.

On the negative side, the songwriting is underwhelming and fails to display the influences and talents of the guests. Steve Kudlow doesn't manage to bring in his classic heavy and speed metal influences, Alexi Laiho's participation doesn't recall his melodic death metal style and Jesper Strömblad's modern take on the extreme metal genre isn't overtly convincing either. All those things would be acceptable if Metal were at least a solid album in the key of Annihilator's usual style but even that isn't the case. Jeff Waters' riffs and solos sound surprisingly uninspired and he often rehashes ideas of his previous career. The most obvious offender is clearly the album closer ''Chasing the High'' that features almost exactly the same riff as ''Ultra Motion''. Those deja-entendu moments aren't sympathetic references to the past but proofs for uninspired songwriting. The clinical production that intends to give this output a more modern sound makes the final product even sound less dynamic and more exchangeable.

Among the few solid songs, one could mention the sinister opener ''Clown Parade'' where Jeff Loomis' guitar work manages to add an oppressive tone reminding of his work with Nevermore. Mike Mangini's drum play is technically appealing and suits this gloomy tune very well but often lacks feeling in the other tunes. Dave Padden proves that he sounds much better than many guest vocalists and his performances prove that his vocal skills have slowly but constantly improved during his stay with Annihilator. This track's chorus is quite catchy despite the distorted vocal effects and the musicianship is good. It's not a great track but clearly the best if compared to the disappointing rest.

The worst of the bunch would be ''Couple Suicide'' which features vocals by Angela Gossow and Danko Jones. It's not just that the participation of an overrated melodic death vocalist and a quite average hard rock singer isn't particularly exciting but the two guests don't have any chemistry and make this track sound all over the place. The instrumental work somewhere between funk influences and nu metal is quite weird and is another experiment gone wrong. Imagine a mixture of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Drowning Pool musically with a poor man's Thirty Seconds to Mars vocalist and occasional unskilled extreme metal screams from a teenager in his parents' basement. This track is a classic example that experimentation isn't necessarily good. 

In the end, this record might only be interesting for avid Annihilator collectors and alternative metal fans. Those who expect gripping thrash or even groove metal, an interesting display of different metal genres or at least a diversified and entertaining compilation of songs will end up being disappointed. The ambitious title of this record doesn't do its purpose justice. Jamming with Friends would have been a more appropriate title.

Final rating: 48%

Annihilator (2010)

Gloomy thrash metal to start a successful decade

Annihilator's inconsistency continues with this solid self-titled output that abandons the band's recently employed modern metal soundscapes and goes back to a more basic thrash metal sound with a cold production one would rather expect from an industrial metal band. This partial stylistic return to the roots might be the reason why the band went for the rather unimaginative self-titled option here.

This album stands out with great melodic guitar work that sounds fresh and not rehashed as on numerous occasions on previous records. The dreamy introduction to the strong opener ''The Trend'' stands out immediately for instance. The fast and melodic solos in the otherwise pitiless ''Coward'' add a much-needed emotional side to the track. ''Ambush'' offers some of Annihilator's fiercest and most technical riffs ever. It quickly becomes obvious that Jeff Waters and Dave Padden harmonize perfectly five and six years after the somewhat inconsistent Schizo Deluxe and All for You records while the previous release Metal should rather be considered a collaborative compilation effort between Jeff Waters and his friends and idols than a genuine Annihilator release. Jeff Waters and Dave Padden have obviously put a lot of thought into each and every single song of this new output that was worth the wait. 

In several songs such as the desperate ''Twenty-Five Seconds'' or the opening moments of the melancholic ''Nowhere to Go'', the bass guitar plays a more prominent role than before as well. The use of this instrument suits the industrial production rather well and increases the album's oppressive atmosphere. 

The vocals vary successfully between angry screams in the key of Over Kill and the likes, hoarse and almost spoken-word-like efforts not unlike Megadeth and a few more melodic efforts in the choruses like Metallica use to employ. Dave Padden switches from one style to another within moments in a single song without sounding misguided or overwhelming. His transitional efforts sound smoother than in the past. While Padden was often criticized by fans of old date for his first efforts with the band, most people agree on him becoming better with each effort and leaving the band on a high note. Up to that point, this was Dave Padden's best vocal performance on any Annihilator record as he constantly expanded and improved his skills during his stay with Jeff Waters' band.

On the negative side, the production is a little bit too cold and dry in my opinion. This has a particularly negative impact on the drum sound which is very artificial. It almost sounds as if a drum computer were used instead of a real musician. In a few songs, Annihilator overuses a stop-and-go technique with sudden moments of silence and abrupt breaks when I would have preferred smoother and less technical transitions. While the record has its own flow and style in form of gloomy thrash metal soundscapes, the album might be missing one or two truly experimental or outstanding tracks as several tunes are slightly similar or even exchangeable.

Among the highlights of this record, one has to point out the epic and melodic opener ''The Trend'' that coherently evolves into a furious thrash metal track. The vivid ''Coward'' is one of the fastest songs in the band's career but doesn't sound stupidly aggressive and comes around with a few minor surprises in form of a technically stunning extended guitar solo, a short drum solo and a somewhat catchy chorus. The desperately aggressive ''Twenty-Five Seconds'' successfully meanders between slow bass guitar rhythms and incredibly fast guitar solos that almost make think that Annihilator has become DragonForce's deranged twin. 

In the end, Annihilator's self-titled album is a coherent and focused effort that sees the band go back to its fast thrash metal roots by adding a dry and gloomy sound to it. The group sounds energizing and hungry again as this release's dynamic and menacing vibe feels truly infectious. In hindsight, this release would start a decade that would surprisingly turn out to be the band's most consistent one as this album was followed by Dave Padden's excellent swansong Feast and the successful transition to Jeff Waters returning to vocal duties on the diversified and vivid Suicide Society and the gloomy and melancholic For the Demented.

Final rating: 77%

Feast (2013)

Some of the best thrash metal in recent memory

Annihilator's ''Feast'' is one of the most diversified, energizing and technically appealing thrash metal releases in recent memory. In addition to an addicting record without any fillers, this special edition comes along with a generous re-recording of fifteen classics that are on the same level as the original tunes and a DVD featuring the band's entire performance at the renowned Wacken Open Air 2013 plus two more video clips. This excellent package is completed by a new cover artwork that should please fans of horror and gore cinema. I've never been a fan of the band in the past even after trying out several classic tunes and seeing them in concert after their most recent line-up change, but this package has made me a true fan and has become my soundtrack of the Canadian spring over the past few weeks.

The main record offers a vivid mixture of pitiless thrash metal in the key of the opener ''Deadlock'', more rock 'n roll inspired tunes such as the dynamic ''Wrapped'' which was co-written and features a guest performance by Canadian hard rock columnist, guitarist and singer Danko Jones and a few more progressive tracks with many shifts and changes such as the epic album closer ''One Falls, Two Rise'' that offers both gripping riffs and hoarse vocals as well as uplifting melodies and cleaner vocal efforts. The album also includes an acceptable mellower ballad in form of ''Perfect Angel Eyes'' that works well as a slow and stripped-down change in style in the context of the album despite its cheesy lyrics. 

Despite this enormous diversity, two other tracks really stand out for me. First of all, there is ''No Surrender'' that features funk rock driven guitar licks, a quite dominating bass guitar play and a highly rhythmical drum play that meet a modern and stomping chorus somewhere between traditional thrash metal and sinister groove metal. This unusual genre combination works extremely well because of its tight and structured execution and even includes dystopian progressive thrash metal guitar sounds and a few psychedelic sounds in the middle section. Even though the lyrics against drug abuse are nothing new for the band, this song really hits the nail on the head since the lyrics that evoke nightmarish descriptions and yet deliver a clear message fit with the twisted musicianship between meandering psychedelic sounds and focused brutal parts. In times where a carefree majority in this country seems to be supportive of legalizing drugs by playing down its dangerous impacts while exaggeratedly and unfairly stigmatizing regular cigarette smokers in publicity campaigns, it's both important and refreshing to hear about this kind of experience and get a logical message from time to time. This song is clearly my favorite on the album.

The second track that stands out is the dynamic up-tempo track ''Demon Code'' that experiments with uplifting traditional heavy metal guitar leads in the middle section while the rest of the song is much angrier and features an oppressing chorus that will haunt you for a long time. Decently employed atmospheric sound effects in the coda, slightly uneasy guitar effects in the few slower parts and a fast bass guitar line add to the gloomy atmosphere of this song. This track brings the visual concept and title of ''Feast'' to the point in an outstanding manner. 

In the end, any thrash metal fan should get his hands on this extraordinary package that offers more than three hours of high-quality entertainment. This underestimated album convinces with its high degree of entertaining diversity without any shifts in focus or quality since the band always manages to sound exactly like itself and nothing else. This is mostly due to a truly inspired and technically impressive guitar and bass guitar play by band leader Jeff Waters, Dave Padden's most diversified and skilled vocal performance of his career and a vivid breath of fresh air brought to you by new and young drummer Mike Harshaw. This package is definitely a perfect introduction to this legendary Canadian band, a beautiful special edition for collectors and fans of long date and an intense swansong for singer Dave Padden who left the band after this album.

Final rating: 97% 

Bonus: The fifteen best tracks from Annihilator's middle years 

1. No Surrender

2. Clare

3. Demon Code

4. Twenty-Five Seconds

5. The Trend

6. All for You

7. Carnival Diablos

8. The Nightmare Factory

9. Insomniac

10. Something Witchy

11. Epic of War

12. Coward

13. Both of Me

14. Clown Parade

15. Nothing to Me