Anvil to release career retrospective
aaamusic | On 28, Sep 2011
Anvil
release
‘Monument of Metal: The Very Best of Anvil,’
career retrospective
October 24th
through Sony
Anvil are true defenders of the faith and they’ve never lost sight of their vision to create uncompromising, dyed in the wool heavy metal. While few bands can make it to the three year mark, Anvil have closed in on three decades of the most uncompromised and ear pleasing metal known to headbangers. The band’s career has developed into a very public rocket ride into the musical and pop culture stratosphere only recently, though.
The award-winning documentary Anvil! The Story of Anvil propelled the Canadian band from their respectable, hard-earned status as a band revered by the likes of Metallica, Motorhead and Guns N’ Roses to a heavy metal feel good story. The rock doc attracted an exponential amount of new fans to a heritage band. Through it all, Anvil founding members, vocalist/guitarist Steve “Lips” Kudlow and drummer Robb Reiner, have made sure that one thing remains constant. And that’s their dedication to their music.
While they continue to craft new, relevant and exciting hard rock music, it’s their history and their catalog that ensures Anvil’s firm and immovable place in the annals of metal history. Their status as legends is inarguable, even though they are still active as ever.
Overall, though, Anvil don’t have their own chapter in the heavy metal encyclopedia; they have their own volume, thanks to a rich, revered cannon that old fans continuously revisit, all the while attracting new fans to their lair with continued quality music. That’s how damn good Anvil are…
…And That’s precisely why The End Records, which also released the band’s fourteenth album Juggernaut of Justice earlier this year, is choosing to celebrate Anvil’s career with Monument of Metal: The Very Best of Anvil, a 19-track career retrospective that will earn “must own” and “must hear” status for fans both fans new and old.
This set collects choice cuts from Anvil’s career and the track listing was hand-selected by the members of Anvil and spans their three-decade career. It is designed to show you why the aforementioned likes of Guns ‘N Roses, Metallica, Motorhead, Anthrax, Slayer and more have praised Anvil as pioneers and way pavers in the heavy metal world. It’s a retrospective spanning the band’s entire iconic career and a comprehensive heavy metal history lesson captured on record.
“This compilation demonstrates the full diversities of Anvil’s sound and feel, from the classics though the dark years to the current,” said rhythm keeper Reiner about the songs collected in this set. “These tracks are more to do with power and melody rather than just the speed aspect, although there relevant gems included here! I feel this Monument of Metal makes a statement introducing Anvil to new pounders along satisfying the faithful.”
Lips concurred, saying, “This compilation is a great diverse collection of Anvil’s history. It’s a good retrospective of 30+ years of the creating and recording of Anvil’s music. These tracks are among some of our favorites.” He did admit that choosing songs was no easy task, since each of Anvil’s songs is a like a kid to him, saying, “Picking them was not easy as generally speaking we love everything we’ve ever done….otherwise we wouldn’t have recorded the music to begin with. This will serve as a great introduction to Anvil as well as make for great listening pleasure for our old diehard fans. Enjoy and stay heavy!!!
The track listing for Monument of Metal: The Very Best of Anvil is as follows, along with key details about each track’s origin.
Track Listing:
“Metal On Metal” (Re-Record From This Is Thirteen 2009 / originally from Metal On Metal, 1982)
“Winged Assassins” (Re-Record, originally From Forged In Fire, 1983)
“666” (From This Is Thirteen, 2009)
“Thumbhang” (From This Is Thirteen, 2009)
“School Love” (Re-Record, originally from Hard ‘N’ Heavy, 1981)
“Heat Sink” (From Metal On Metal, 1982)
“March of the Crabs (instrumental) (From Metal On Metal, 1982)
“Plenty of Power” (From Plenty Of Power, 2001)
“Mothra” (From Metal On Metal, 1982)
“Sins of the Flesh” (From Worth the Weight, 1992)
“Jackhammer (live)” (From Past And Present; Live In Concert, 1989)
“Juggernaut of Justice” (From Juggernaut of Justice, 2011)
“No One To Follow” (From Absolutely No Alternative, 1997)
“Mad Dog” (From Strength of Steel, 1997)
“Bottom Feeder” (From Back to Basics, 2004)
“Race Against Time” (From Still Going Strong, 2002)
“American Refugee” (From This Is Thirteen, 2007)
“Fire In The Night” (From Pound For Pound, 1988)
“Park That Truck” (From Speed of Sound, 1999)
