Album Review – Alexisonfire – Otherness

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THEY’RE BACK

Thirteen years since Old Crows/Young Cardinals, Alexisonfire is back with a full album of new material, Otherness. So grab your favorite hoody and Dickies shorts, and let’s dive into the Album Review – Alexisonfire – Otherness

The tone for Otherness is set right off the bat, with the methodical, chunky opening riff of ‘Committed to the Con’ that lets you know that this ride might be a little slower than you were expecting, but it is damn sure still going to be heavy. ‘Sweet Dreams of Otherness’ does a fantastic job of letting all the members of AOF have a moment to shine, and this is a great, banger of a track that is going to sound amazing in a packed, sweaty club.

Dallas Green takes the spotlight for ‘Sans Soleil’, with soaring melodies and deep lyrics that are all about holding onto hope in your darkest moments. And just because AOF can, they go from deep introspection to a George Petit screamer. Anyone questioning if Alexisonfire can still go hard will be happy to crank ‘Conditional Love’ for their hardcore fix.

A DIFFERENT TONE

Alexisonfire slow things back down with ‘Blue Spade’, a grungy, dirty, Delta blues-infused thumper, before ‘Dark Night of the Soul’, a hardcore-prog rock anthem that features George, Dallas, and Wade all playing with vocal harmonies and heavy riffs.

A song that sounds like it needs a massive smoky room filled with an assortment of lasers, ‘Mistaken Information’, a beautifully achy ballad with Wade’s dreamy, wailing guitar paired wonderfully with Dallas’ familiar vocals. AOF follows that up audio tease, a John Carpenter-inspired synth opening on ‘Survivor’s Guilt’ quickly gives way to George’s growl and a smack in the face from the rest of the gang. Just in case the change of pace made you think AOF had changed, ‘Survivor’s Guilt’ slides in to remind everyone that Alexisonfire can still bring it.

‘Reverse the Curse’, the penultimate song on Otherness, was originally intended for Old Crows/Young Cardinals. Fortunately, it has seen the light of day! Another great reminder that while Alexisonfire’s sound has evolved over time, they can still crank out roaring tracks -and the organ on ‘Reverse the Curse’ is an awesome touch.

Closing out the album is ‘World Stops Turning’, an eight-minute fantastic song that manages to soar, smack, and once again give every member a moment to shine. This track also truly showcases what a great job Jonah Falco did to produce this album, as he allowed ‘World Stops Turning’ to stretch out and sprawl, while still keeping it tight.

THE VERDICT

Otherness is a fantastic album that really showcases how every member of Alexisnofire has all evolved and developed over time. The best part about this album is how it feels like this truly feels like five artists all working together as one, and you can really hear the love and passion of the music. Alexisonfire has managed to create an amazing album that is solid from start to finish that will appeal to fans used to staying up late in hopes of catching an AOF video on The Wedge, as well as fans hearing AOF for the first time.

Otherness is available now from Dine Alone Records, wherever you stream/purchase music, and Alexisonfire is hitting the road to go on tour!

Check out https://theonlybandever.com/ for more details.

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