Riffer Madness

Multi-string Virtuoso Tosin Abasi and his animals as leaders expand their already otherworldy sound even further on the madness of many.

- Jon Wiederhorn

HAVING RELEASED THREE virtuosic instrumental albums, Animals as Leaders wanted to expand their creative boundaries even further for the follow-up to 2014’s highly praised The Joy of Motion.

“The last thing I ever want to be is formulaic in any way,” says guitarist Tosin Abasi from his Los Angeles home. “We felt it was time to re-examine what we were doing and attack our music from a fresh perspective.”

The band has done just that on its new album The Madness of Many, a diverse, progressive offering that remains faithful to the booming, syncopated, eight-string sound they helped pioneer while blending it with more experimental techniques.

“Arithmophobia” starts with a guitar that sounds like a sitar before an epileptic rhythm engulfs the trippy vibe, and “Private Visions of the World” combines dexterous finger picking and jaunty jazz licks with next-level shredding.

Abasi didn’t pluck all of the album’s unconventional styles from the ether. He was heavily inspired by Melbourne, Australia, progressive neo-soul/jazz group Hiatus Kaiyote and neuro bass artists, including Misanthrop, KOAN Sounds and Noisia.