Always and Forever

Personnel: Dryden Mitchell (vocals); Terry Corso (guitar); Jay Terrien, Andrew Duckles (viola); Simone Vitucci, Leah Metzler (cello); Mike Cosgrove, Scott Nelson , Pete Lucero (drums).
Audio Mixer: Johnny K .
Recording information: Groovemaster Studios, Chicago, IL.
Nearly ten years after the release of Up in the Attic, Alien Ant Farm returned in early 2015 with Always and Forever. The band never quite disbanded in the interim -- vocalist Dryden Mitchell and drummer Mike Cosgrove kept some version of it rolling -- and the group sometimes shows evidence of the toil of the years, such as when they slide into Live territory on "Burning." This shift to AAA is a surprise, even if it does suit their age, and AAF has a couple other tricks up their sleeve, including their own version of Franz Ferdinand's "Take Me Out" ("Our Time"), more ballads than you'd think, some ska horns, and "Homage," a journey through the history of rock & roll that's the equal of DAUGHTRY's "Long Live Rock & Roll." If there's a scattershot quality to Always and Forever, that seems partially due to the band just dumping a decade's worth of ideas. Either way, it's their liveliest record and possibly their most interesting to boot. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine