Art of Anarchy are a supergroup that includes, among others, Bumblefoot, guitarist in Guns n’ Roses before the ‘Not in this Lifetime’ reunion with Slash, and Moyer, who plays bass in Disturbed. The first incarnation of the band had frontman Scott Weiland (Stone Temple Pilots, Velvet Revolver) in the mix. His death did put everything on hold for a while, before the announcement that another sui generis figure, Scott Stapp of Creed fame, would be his replacement.
‘The Madness’ is in fact Stapp’s return to hard rock. He’s coming off an unbelievable rollercoaster of a story. Self-medication for bipolar disorder resulted to invisible enemies, weird theories and government conspiracies that he was the target of; anyway, the man seems to have figured things out and his voice is in good shape. This is an uplifting hard rock album, without novelties but with solid performances, tight songwriting and production, as well as 3-4 potential hits, whatever that means these days. It lasts 36 minutes, which is perfect! Not every album should be more than an hour long, especially when it’s as focused as ‘The Madness’ proves to be.
