UMUR "Screams and Whispers" is the fourth full-length studio album by US, Missouri based thrash/progressive metal act Anacrusis. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in May 1993. It´s the successor to "Manic Impressions" from May 1991. There´s been one lineup change since the predecessor as Chad Smith has been replaced by Paul Miles. Promotional videos were made for the tracks "Sound the Alarm" and "Release". "Screams and Whispers" ended up being Anacrusis last album in their original run as they disbanded shortly after the album was released.

Stylistically they´ve now made a complete tranformation from their raw and aggressive thrash metal roots towards a technically well played and progressive metal sound. The raw snarling thrash metal vocals and high pitched piercing screams are almost gone from the music (they still appear on occasion), and lead vocalist/guitarist Kenn Nardi predominantly sings clean vocals ranging from semi-raw singing to mellow atmospheric cleans. I´m often reminded of a more metalized and progressive version of Killing Joke (and artists like Alchemist and mid-90s Morgoth, but that was later and they were both also greatly influenced by Killing Joke, so maybe they don´t count). Both when it comes to the vocals but also the general feeling and atmosphere of the music. Anacrusis aren´t easy to pin down like that though, and there are a lot of other influences heard and Killing Joke is just one of them.

The music features both heavy thrashy parts, although that part of Anacrusis music has decreased greatly since "Manic Impressions", but more often heavy riffs and atmospheric clean guitars. In that respect Anacrusis did follow the times as many other contemporary thrash metal acts also released less thrashy albums. Artists like Coroner, Testament, Overkill, and Metallica in particular turned away from thrash metal (some for longer than others). Anacrusis have elements of the heavy alternative influence which some of the other mentioned artists were also toying with at the time, but of course Anacrusis were a much more progressive and unconventional sounding act. Which is probably why they never rose to anything but cult status. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Manic Impressions" is the third full-length studio album by US, Missouri based thrash metal act Anacrusis. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in May 1991. It´s the successor to "Realm" from February 1990. There´s been one lineup change since the predecessor as drummer Mike Owen has been replaced by Chad Smith. Being signed to Metal Blade Records finally meant some stability for Anacrusis on the label front, and Metal Blade Records even purchased the rights to the band´s first two albums and reissued them. Two promotional videos where shot for the tracks "I Love the World" (cover of New Model Army) and "Something Real", suggesting that Metal Blade Records genuinely believed in Anacrusis.

Stylistically "Manic Impressions" continues the development which Anacrusis started on "Reason", moving from their traditional thrash/speed metal roots towards a more technical and progressive thrash metal style. Featuring a more well balanced and professional sounding production "Manic Impressions" is a sharper and more detailed version of the style initiated on "Reason" with a few new added progressive songwriting ideas. Lead vocalist/guitarist Kenn Nardi switches between raw snarling thrash metal vocals, spoken word parts, and atmospheric clean vocal parts. The latter sometimes remind me of 80s UK pop/rock/electronic music act vocals but also 80s shoegaze vocals. He is definitely not a power/progressive metal vocalist like you´re used to hearing them (high pitched and theatrical in delivery). He is not the most skilled or distinct sounding clean vocalist, but there´s still something compelling about his clean vocals that I can´t quite put my finger on, but they generally work with the instrumental part of the music.

The songwriting is unconventional, adventurous, and at time even daring. Anacrusis obviously have an ambitious vision of what their music should sound like, and they follow that vision for better or worse. It´s as non-mainstream as you can get. In that respect they remind me of Voivod, although they are relatively far from the Canadians in terms of the actual music. But the overall vision isn´t that different. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Hindsight: Suffering Hour & Reason Revisited" is the fifth full-length studio album by US, Missouri based thrash/progressive metal act Anacrusis. The album was released through Divebomb Records in February 2011. Anacrusis formed in 1984 and released four full-length studio albums in the period 1988-1993 after which they disbanded. They however reunited in 2009 in their original lineup, but instead of writing new material they opted to re-record the material from their first two albums, "Suffering Hour" (1988) and "Reason" (1990) and the "Apocalypse" track from their 1986 "Annihilation Complete" demo and released the material as "Hindsight: Suffering Hour & Reason Revisited".

The early Anacrusis albums didn´t feature the most well sounding production jobs, and it´s probably why the band opted to re-record the material and present it with a more professional sounding production. Stylistically the material from "Suffering Hour" (1988) and the "Apocalypse" track are pretty raw and aggressive thrash metal bordering technical thrash metal, while the material on "Reason" is full-on technical thrash metal with progressive metal leanings. Lead vocalist/guitarist Kenn Nardi has a raw thrash metal voice and occasionally also delivers a high pitched piercing scream. He sings some clean vocals, but they mostly occur on the material from "Reason".

Nardi is credited for producing, engineering, and mixing "Hindsight: Suffering Hour & Reason Revisited" and it´s a relatively well produced release. I´m not sure about the whole re-recording idea though. While the first two albums arguably could have prospered from better sounding production values, there is still some charm to the gritty and unpolished nature of the original recordings, which you don´t get here. On the other hand some of the worst production errors on the original recordings have been corrected here. All clean/acoustic guitar parts for example sound good on "Hindsight: Suffering Hour & Reason Revisited", which they didn´t on the original recordings, and the clean vocals are also better sounding here than they were on the original recordings. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Reason" is the second full-length studio album by US, Missouri based thrash metal act Anacrusis. The album was released through Active Records in February 1990. It´s the successor to "Suffering Hour" from 1988, but since Anacrusis only had a one-album deal with Axis Records, they recorded the "Quick to Doubt" demo in 1989 and used it to shop for a new label. Seven out of the eight tracks from the demo was re-recorded and included on "Reason" (all eight tracks if you have the European version featuring "Killing My Mind" and "Injustice" as bonus material).

Stylistically Anacrusis have developed a lot since "Suffering Hour", which featured a raw and aggressive thrash metal style with technical thrash metal leanings. "Reason" is still a thrash metal album, but in addition to the technical playing (which has increased) the album also features quite a few progressive songwriting ideas making this a technical/progressive thrash metal release. It´s artists like contemporary Coroner, Realm, and Mekong Delta I´m reminded of while listening to "Reason", but a much more resent band like Vektor must also have worshipped Anacrusis in their youth.

The vocals switch between raw snarling thrash vocals and some mellow atmospheric clean vocals, which unfortunately aren´t produced that well. The sound production is otherwise pretty decent for the time (the clean/acoustic guitar parts could also have benefitted from better production choices though). Upon conclusion Anacrusis took at bit step towards a more technical/progressive metal style on "Reason" and while they certainly didn´t leave behind their raw and aggressive thrash metal vocals, speed, and riffs, "Reason" is generally a much more sophisticated release than "Suffering Hour". A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Quick to Doubt" is a demo recording by US, Missouri based thrash metal act Anacrusis. The demo was independently released in 1989. It follows the release of Anacrusis 1988 debut full-length studio album "Suffering Hour". It´s a bit unusual for a band to have to record demos when they have already released a debut album, but Anacrusis were only given a one-album deal by Axis Records, and they were therefore out shopping for a new recording contract. A contract they would eventually sign with Active Records for the release of their second full-length studio album "Reason" (1990). Seven out of the eight tracks from this demo was re-recorded and included on "Reason".

The demo was recorded on a four-track tape recorder in guitarist Kevin Heidbreder's basement. Considering those recording conditions Anacrusis have managed to produce a pretty well sounding demo. Stylistically Anacrusis still play an aggressive thrash metal style, but since "Suffering Hour" they´ve increased the technical playing and progressive songwriting ideas, and it´s interesting to hear how fast Anacrusis were developing. The raw thrash metal vocals and the clean vocals are now more evenly distributed and the songs feature fewer all out thrash metal sections. Instead Anacrusis toy with different tempi, time-signatures, intriguing lead guitar work, and even some atmospheric sections. It´s a promising demo and a 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.