Brought into the limelight by buddies PAPA ROACH, the guys in ALIEN ANT FARM haven't exactly had an easy time getting noticed.
Five years prior to the release of Anthology, ALIEN ANT FARM was struggling in the California Club Circuit along with every other band on the planet. Thanks to this new record company concept of "We'll give you your own label, and you can bring all of your friends along...for a percentage" concept, PAPA ROACH was able to bring these guys along for the ride into the mainstream.
They also were given an even further leg up by PAPA ROACH producer, Jay Baumgardner, who helped them fine tune their chunky, guitar-driven sound.
The end result is decent. Nothing too broad, but hey...it's their first major label effort. Standouts include the opener, "Courage," led by Mike Cosgrove's off-kilter clatter and Dryden Mitchell's winding lyrics; a chopping, pleading cover of Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal" (which, by the way, is all over rock radio); and the revved up "Flesh and Bone." With the tense, Pearl Jam-like "Attitude," ALIEN ANT FARM attempt to change the mood and tempo.
Their big problem is that their current hit is a cover tune. Sure, people like "Smooth Criminal", because they already know it from Michael Jackson's version. What's going to be hard for the guys in Alien Ant Farm is seeing whether or not the public will embrace the originals as much as the cover tunes.
