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by Sebastian Kluth

Lips Is Running Out of Motivation - A Review of Anvil's One and Only

Anvil - One and Only (2024)

It has been a negative surprise to read a recent interview with Anvil's guitarist and singer Lips in which he explained that he doesn't have any fun recording new Anvil material anymore. In the recent past, he has been complaining about having to do odd jobs in the past, about financial struggles and about playing in front of small crowds time and again. What Lips doesn't seem to realize anymore is that he is living the dream in a world shattered by poverty, conflicts and addictions. He has been playing his favourite type of music for a whopping forty-six years and counting, is in a band with his very best friend, is surrounded by two particularly skilled musicians, has been publishing twenty records with Anvil alone and has played concerts in dozens of different countries many people never even get the chance to discover. Instead of complaining time and again, Lips should simply be grateful and enjoy what he is doing.

That lack of enjoyment is painfully obvious when listening to One and Only. Anvil's songwriting has never been that lazy. The typical song on this album looks like this. It's three and a half minutes long. It's a mid-tempo track. The lyrics deal with social issues or heavy metal lifestyle. The track opens with a short instrumental section, followed by a verse, a chorus, another verse, another chorus, an instrumental bridge and yet again a chorus to conclude the tune. The choruses often consist of two or three words that are aimlessly repeated time and again. The record's single "Feed Your Fantasy" might be the worst offender in that regard and sounds so nerve-firing that it wouldn't come as a surprise if the song were used as an instrument of torture when interrogating terrorists.

One and Only sounds as bland as it gets. The versatile drum player never gets to prove his incredible talent. The bass guitar sound is underused. The rhythm and lead guitars are caught in repetitive mid-tempo patterns. The vocals sound the same as usual. The new record doesn't present any new ideas: no ballad, no epic, no instrumental, nothing at all that manages to stand out. Strong predecessor Impact Is Imminent still had all these elements and is fondly remembered as one of Anvil's greatest records of the new millennium. One and Only sounds uninspired, repetitive and lifeless from start to finish. The record sounds as if it had been written in one week, recorded in one week and produced in one week in order to fulfil some contract engagements. The final result is the worst Anvil record I have ever been listening to.

At the end of the day, Anvil's One and Only is as disappointing as Lips' grumpy attitude. My recommendation is to skip that unremarkable record and listen to another Anvil record of the past again instead. Lips should quickly organize some changes in his life to rekindle his passion for recording records again and release a decent new album in the future. His best friend and drummer is absolutely right when he claims that artists should always find new inspiration to make the most of their time on this wonderful planet. One and Only sadly lack both inspiration and wonder but here's encouragement and hope to do much better next time around.

Final Rating: 50%

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