Anti-Clone - The Root Of Man
UK nu-metallers dissapoint on copycat debut album
“Nu metal was the most creative metal has been. It pushed boundaries to every extent” is a statement that would undoubtedly make many a metalhead turn their head in disgust, but the statement comes from Anti-Clone frontman “Mr. Clone”, and it shows that the Boston(UK)-bred group are happy to wear their inspirations on their sleeve, without a care for whatever enemies they may make along the way. Their brand of new nu-metal stands out from the recent trend of self-proclaimed nu-metal acts that in truth share little with the sub-genre’s pioneers, by in no small way reminding of the likes of Korn, Deftones and Slipknot.
To hear that Anti-Clone remind more of Korn and Slipknot than they do Limp Bizkit and (sigh) Crazy Town may appease some of the nu-metal haters, but what may disappoint is a lack of fresh ideas. Anti-Clone are not here to revive the genre by modernising it or adding an inventive new take on the established sound. Instead they strive to tap into what made nu-metal fun the first time around, meaning that much of The Root Of Man is little more than a combination of Anti-Clone’s fairly obvious influences. The crazed shouting on the outro to ‘Deracinated’, for instance, reminds of Slipknot’s infamous cry of “fuck me, I’m all out of enemies”, whilst ‘Switchblade’s repeated “don’t you call me a freak” line calls to the outcast nature of nu-metal, much like Papa Roach did in 2000 with ‘Last Resort’.
The simplistic bouncing riff of ‘Feed The Machine’ struggles to recreate nu-metal’s hip hop elements, whilst its lyrics are a noticeable far-cry from the shocking lyrics bands like Korn and Slipknot could occasionally come out with (see: Korn’s ‘Daddy’ and Slipknot’s ‘Disasterpiece’). Rather, they are a poor attempt at being edgy, with Mr. Clone sounding more like a profanity-enlightened toddler than a convincingly sinister maniac -“I don’t like you, you fucker, you fucker, you dirty piece of shit”. Admittedly, neither Korn nor Slipknot are or ever were truly maniacs, but the haunting illusions that came with their dark personas were a key part of what made their early material so horrifically fun. Anti-Clone try and fail to recreate this vibe, with their predictable masks and unconvincing stage presence.
Put all this aside, however, and Anti-Clone’s recycled ideas can still deliver some memorable moments. B9’s chugging riffs and sinister undertones, for example, help make it a dark, hard-hitting highlight, whilst the driving fury of ‘Asaroth’ chugs along in a style similar to Slipknot’s ‘Spit It Out’ - an undeniably fun homage to the sort of nu-metal that was the most cathartic.
Meanwhile, ‘A Sight for Sewn Eyes’ attempts to recreate the rage of a psychotic freak-out, with a stitching together of occasional grooves and jagged guitars, over-which Mr Clone switches between Moreno-tinged harmonies and crazed shouting. The track works well to deliver its mental motif, but the jarring shifts in both tempo and aggression can become tedious. The track’s most coherent and commanding section is its heavy outro, where its various elements finally mould together to deliver a powerful metal assault.
Anti-Clone’s relentless but transparent attempts to channel the fun of a genre long-forgotten by many is commendable. Their disregard of the opinion of nu-metal’s ruthless haters is exactly the sort of I-don’t-give-a-fuck attitude that many of nu-metal’s most memorable artists would be proud of. However, their somewhat blatant use of elements from these artists is what makes it so unconvincing, and the harsh reality is that The Root of Man delivers nothing you haven’t already heard 16 years ago. Anti-Clone’s inspirations are hardly a mystery, but put this aside, and there is at least some fun to be had with The Root of Man, it just would’ve been nice to see some inventiveness to breathe new life into a genre often looked back on negatively.
5/10
