Band : The Agonist
Album title : Lullabies For The Dormant Mind
Label : Century Media
Distributor : EMI
Release date : 23/02/2009
Release : CD

Prior to the release of their debut album Once Only Imagined (review by your servant posted 06/09/2007), this Canadian Alternative Nu-Extreme act’s frontwoman Alissa White-Gluz was voted one of “the hottest chick in Metal” in the July 2007 issue of the Revolver magazine. Following the release, and thanks to the support of their label, the band set out for the road in promotion of the album, touring extensively with the likes of God Forbid, Arsis, The Faceless, Sonata Arctica, Overkill, Epica, Visions Of Atlantis, Enslaved, Doro, After Forever, and others. The Agonist’s single Business Suits And Combat Boots won honors on Headbangers Ball in the category “Viewers Choice Best Music Videos Of 2007”. In other words, a rollercoaster of nice things happening to this band started in 2004! Along the way they added befriended guitarist Chris Adolph (actually replacing Andrew Tapley) to their live line-up in order to keep up the musical standards set by their studio album.

But not àll was hunky dory! In late November 2007 the band was trying to make their way through a blizzard in the Rocky Mountains (to get to an Oregon show and continue the Enslavedtour), when they found themselves landing in a ditch. Nobody got hurt, but the trailer came upside-down on its nose. After that, the van short-fused, they nearly killed a deer (which was havoc on Alissa’s vegan principles) when it crossed the road at the wrong moment, and also got a flat tire on their new van/trailer combo. Alissa then found out that she was having to miss the burial of a third family member since the start of touring! It all was só discouraging the band decided to turn and go back home, thus disrupting the tour! Obviously, the band picked up their touring schedule afterwards, and in between the band was already starting work on new material (they even sent out a call to the fans on the Internet for possible topics for lyrics), and by in May 2008 Alissa was already laying down vocals for the new, Christian Donaldson (Cryptopsy guitarist since 2005, also a member of Mythosis) produced album.

The band definitely went through a great progression since their debut, and they’ve upped the ante by composing far more intricate songs than before! Not only in the guitar department, but also through the addition of violins (courtesy of Mahogany Rush’s Avi Ludmer – you know, I just found out that The Agonist guitarist Danny Marino is actually a family member of Frank, the great guitarist of Mahogany Rush!!!) and keyboards to the whole (a lot of the time atmospheric, but occasionally also in a piano key mode). What with the band members adding influences from Classical, Jazz, Opera, Grindcore, Thrash and Black Metal, it makes for a deliciously “filled” sound which is a 200% improvement on the sound of the debut album! Also, the drums have gotten a mùch better sound than on the debut, now perfectly reflecting the frantincally pounding antics of drummer Simon McKay!

Check out for yourselves how positively the band’s sound has grown by surfing to www.myspace.com/theagonist, where you’ll find full-length versions of the album opening “The Tempest” and “Martyr Art” off the new album next to 3 full-length songs off the debut (further down the page, you can also listen to 30-second samples of àll of that album’s 10 tracks). You’ll also find the video for the aforemmentioned “Business Suits And Combat Boots”,andthreestudio reports/ road footage…which learned me that on stage at least, Alissa get some off the growled & screamed backings from bassist Chris Kells! Regrettably, the band did nót post Alissa’s a capella rendition of Tchaikowsky’s Swan Lake’s “Opus 20 – Scene, Act 2”. Man, that is só beautifully brought it caused my internal emotion meter to jump past its highest stand, leading to the inevitable relief of tears welling up in my eyes!

When this band came out with their debut, I felt they were promissing…but not quite there…and I can honestly say that now The Agonist have arrived! Arrived into my year-lists, that is! Gee (wo)man, what a tremendous album! It pounds from front til end, but not without the necessary amount of melody. It’s all-out aggressive, but not without the necessary calmer passages! In short, throw these boys and girl in the bigger arenas, and they may well make it big-time! They sure have the musical luggage to make it now…well, we can only hope they don’t get to be the victim of too many illegal downloads, of course!

98/100

Tony.