EP REVIEW: Carousel – ANIIMALIA
After coming together in 2020, ANIIMALIA found themselves with the proverbial rocket strapped to their backs barely two years later. The quartet won Kerrang! Radio‘s The Deal, which saw them not only land a record deal with Marshall Records but a slot at Download Festival and the chance to record a five-track EP with esteemed producer and engineer Romesh Dodangoda. By the time Pressure Points exploded onto the scene the hype machine was in full flow.
Fast forward to 2024 and ANIIMALIA are back with a new EP called Carousel looking to continue the momentum. The good news for fans is that if they liked the first EP then this new offering will also be right up their street. But that doesn’t it’s a complete runaway success across the board.
Things kick off with Who’s Gonna Stop Me which immediately shows why many believe the band has so much potential. The vocals through the verses wrap around the track rather than punching directly through it. While the cries of “who’s gonna stop me?” are more a swaggering statement of defiance than anything resembling a question. The chorus is a typically balls-to-the-wall affair but feels as though frontwoman, Kira Beckett is more comfortable lower in her range than when trying to reach for the stars.
Hurt Me Back opens with a crunching, more menacing riff laced with dark intentions. The theme continues until the track launches into another mega chorus. Lead single Puppeteer is the best song on the EP by a distance and feels like the moment when the band really puts it all together. The initial vocals are almost ethereal and swirl with a haunting menace, before being joined by a stomping rhythm powered by a brilliantly rumbling bassline from Max Reynolds. The towering chorus is the icing on the cake.
The final track Doom is more brooding but lacks the spark to make it must-listen. The final section is a complete surprise, with the song effectively fading out before crunching back into view for one final ear-splitting salvo.
Carousel shows exactly why ANIIMALIA have so much potential, but also why they haven’t quite delivered on it yet. While the high points are seriously impressive, they arrive only in flashes. Sections of Who’s Gonna Stop Me and Puppeteer show what the band’s capable of when everything clicks, but elsewhere it feels like something’s missing. All the pieces of the jigsaw are there. This isn’t a band lacking talent. But the challenge lies in putting all the pieces of the jigsaw together.
Rating: 7/10
Carousel is out now via Marshall Records.
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