ANIMALS AS LEADERS - ANIMALS AS LEADERS
VÖ: 17.07.2009
Label/Vertrieb: Prosthetic /Soulfood
Presse/Online Promotion
Supreme technical / progressive forward thinking metal / ambient / electronica from ex-Reflux guitar genius, Tosin Abasi. For fans of
Cynic, Steve Vai and Pelican.
With the Washington, D.C.-based Reflux, 7-string guitarist Tosin Abasi caught the attention of discerning fans with fierce riffs and fleet-fingered solos that sharpened the edge of the band's politically-minded progressive
metalcore. The band's moment in the spotlight was brief, but in that time, the
group built a dedicated cult following via extensive touring with the likes of
Strapping Young Lad, Darkest Hour, August Burns Red, Animosity, From A
Second Story Window and many more.
Soon after Reflux disbanded, Abasi began work on an instrumental solo
project as a way to further express his musical personality. The resulting self-titled debut from Abasi's new band
Animals As Leaders, a 12-track collection of guitar-driven progressive instrumentals with ambient and electronic
influences, is a scintillating showcase for one of the finest young guitarists in rock today.
"I definitely wanted to make an album that was 'guitar-centric,' but also interesting from other perspectives," Abasi
explains. He succeeded, as his dazzling performances on both 7- and 8-string guitars are flashy and technical,
yet also tasteful and melodic. And even though they contain no words, the album's songs speak volumes --
something that's evident from the opening notes of album kickoff "Tempting Time."
"'Tempting Time' loosely deals with some of the time-based societal pressures that come with getting older,"
Abasi says. "It's about reconciling your place in your life with where society feels like you should be, and
understanding the finite amount of time you have in life to do anything."
Although Abasi wrote all the music on the album and played bass in addition to all guitars, he emphasizes that
Animals As Leaders is very much a band, and the group has already performed several concerts in and around
the Beltway. Additional gigs, including a high-profile return to April's New England Metal and Hardcore Festival
(where he performed twice with Reflux), will follow.
As for the band's moniker, Abasi says it relates to looking at the world from an animal's perspective, and that it
was inspired in part by the book Ishmael, in which the author uses a telepathic gorilla to critique human culture. "A
lot of what we do is completely removed from the fact that we?re all essentially animals," Abasi recently told the
Washington City Paper. "We have a niche on the planet and we have a role in sustainable sort of ecology, but
we?ve gone against our natural calling. The name is acknowledging that we do have more of a natural role on the
planet, but it’s also like, who would follow an animal to do anything? I think of the name as being both nonsensical
and really literal."
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