Anchor Lane - Call This a Reality?

Album Name: Call This a Reality?

Artist: Anchor Lane

Released: January 2023

Rating: 8.5/10

Tracklist

Stutter
Ministry
Call This a Reality?
Nitroglycerin
I've Been Waiting
The Mischievous Song
Choke
Electric Karma
Bitter
The Static
Sychophant Disorder
I Don't Have Another Soul to Pour

On the 27th of January Glasgow rock band Anchor Lane released their full-length album 'Call This a Reality?' as well as recently announcing a headline UK tour for February to support the release. The Glasgow three-piece made up of Conor, Lawrence and Graeme have been continually building a following starting prior to their 2020 release 'Casino', thanks to their relentless gigging schedule. Anchor Lane have already achieved things like their last album going straight to no. 9 on the Official UK Rock Charts marking the band's first Top 10. The Glasgow outfit have also had the opportunity to play festivals such as, Download, Isle of Wight, Stone Free, Belladrum and more. These guys are grabbing people's attention for all the right reasons. Anchor Lane have spent the last couple of years writing and recording in Glasgow with producer Bruce Rintoul, as well as using time during the pandemic to connect with fans via live streams after the release of previous album 'Casino'. Newest release 'Call This a Reality?' I think shows how the band have matured over the last couple of years and really grown into their sound. Songs on the album such as 'I've Been Waiting' and 'I Don't Have Another Soul to Pour' I think are very true to Anchor Lane's sound. 'Choke' also reminds me a lot of earlier releases from the band but besides this there's a lot on here that feels very new and at times unexpected. It's almost impossible for me to pick favourites from this 12-track but there are five tracks I've managed to narrow down as ones I cannot get enough of. I'm going to start with second track on 'Call This a Reality?', 'Ministry', this song was the first one I ever heard from Anchor Lane when I saw them play it live opening for Skindred in 2021, I think because of this 'Ministry' will always be a special song to me. Recorded this track has this anthemic sounding chorus that really stands out and could get easily stuck in your head. The track is punchy and catchy and all round a very good song. Two that are definitely more upbeat and dance-worthy on the album are title track 'Call This a Reality?' and 'The Mischievous Song'. These ones are guaranteed to make everyone want to get up on the dancefloor. 'Call This a Reality?' is a very infectious track that's punchy and has a little bit of a grungy edge to it. Whereas 'The Mischievous Song' is straight up fun, it's groovy and easy to sing along with and comes complete with guitar work that shows off the talents of the Anchor Lane guitarist. The last song I'm going to mention before I get carried away and ramble about how much I like all of them is 'Sychophant Disorder'. This one follows on from an emotional interlude 'The Static' and comes in hard. This is by far my favourite riff on 'Call This a Reality?', it's dark and aggressive delivering a different tone than the rest of the album. From the get-go you get a sense of anger from this track, and it just grows into this huge feeling piece that literally had me getting goosebumps. This is a song I found I could easily get lost in and I know I said earlier I couldn't pick a favourite but 'Sychophant Disorder' is really fighting for it. Overall 'Call This a Reality?' is a standout album for me. Compared to the rest of Anchor Lane's discography this one seems bigger and is pure rock n roll, filled with catchy and heavy riffs that will get stuck in your head matched with infectious vocal melodies and a grunge/alt rock rhythm section. For any modern rock lover Anchor Lane are a band to be checking out, their energy is unmatched.