ALBUM REVIEW: One And Only – Anvil

“Originality the key to success” is the first lyric you hear on One And Only, and if there’s a band that represents this, it’s ANVIL. The veterans are in the hallowed halls of heavy metal legends, inspiring many of the world’s biggest metal bands like METALLICA, MEGADETH and countless others. While they were largely forgotten and cast aside in the late 80s to the mid 00s they still had regular album releases and refused to call it quits. That undying energy to never surrender paid off in 2006 with the release of their documentary Anvil! The Story Of Anvil as they came back into the spotlight which they’ve since maintained.

Now in 2024, ANVIL are still going strong, maybe even stronger than ever on their 20th studio album, the aptly-named One And Only. While ANVIL don’t reinvent the wheel with their albums, they have fun making the music they want to make, which shines strongly through One And Only. Forgoing the speed metal they’re known for, ANVIL have opted to take a slower pace with a return to their roots back from their Metal Blade days. With the opening note of the title track Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow’s guitar is a fuzzy riff-laden device which doesn’t cease operating until the final bell at the end of the album.

Robb Reiner behind the kit hits hard and precise without showing off with some wild drum fills. Besides the point, that wouldn’t fit the ANVIL style. Even on a slower song like Heartbroken, where Lips’ sharp guitar shrieks to the high heavens, Reiner utilizes the aspect of ‘less is more’ and he makes it work fantastically – not just on this song but throughout the album. To the average heavy metal fan One And Only may seem empty, repetitive and devoid of energy. But if you go back 40 years, this is what put them on the map.

Lips’ vocals throughout are rough around the edges, but his gruff gravely tone is quintessential ANVIL. It wouldn’t be the same with another voice as the driving force behind, and in front, of the band. Intentional or not, Feed Your Fantasy does ooze something of a sleazy bluesy/country sound that’s taken over the land as of late within the guitar work. Almost like it was made explicitly for a biker bar, it’s the signature sound that comes on the jukebox just before a brawl breaks out.

If you are in the need for your fast fix and double bass assault, final song Blind Rage scratches the itch perfectly. Is the song as fast as their previous outputs? No, but Lips and Reiner are both in their 60s and have been doing this since the late 70s so props are given to them for keeping it up for this long. Although it does pose the thought that ANVIL are getting old, so how long can they keep this up before the train derails?

In light of that thought, One And Only is a nostalgia driven piece of art, and while it doesn’t rival their 80s material, it is one of the best ANVIL albums this side of the turn of the century.

Rating: 7/10

One And Only is set for release on June 28th via AFM Records.

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