Seattlites Nevermore carved a unique little niche for themselves, mixing power metal, thrash, and traditional heavy metal stylings into a heady, dark witch's brew that's as muscular as it is melodic. While previous platters Dead Heart, in a Dead World and Dreaming Neon Black were sprawling, epic concept albums, Enemies of Reality has more elements of a nasty little thrash record, clocking in at a relatively brief 40 minutes and letting rip with the pummeling aggression of the leadoff title track (which boasts typically stellar guitar work courtesy of Jeff Loomis, who carefully balances technical shredding with rock-solid, articulate riffs). Producer Kelly Gray's (Queensrÿche, Dokken) mix sounds a bit botched during the maniacal tempo changes and dizzying fretwork of cuts like "Ambivalent" and "Never Purify," which would definitely benefit from a fine-edged, less muddy guitar sound; however, his knob-twisting sharpens the dynamics of stunningly effective power ballads "Who Decides" (just try prying that guitar hook out of your brain) and "Tomorrow Turned Into Yesterday," which boasts the crystalline quality demanded by the down-tempo, clean arpeggios of the verses, and explosive peaks for the chorus' rib-crunching body blows. Vocalist Warrel Dane's lyrics are, as usual, devastatingly bleak and poetic, especially when schizoid voices overlap during psychedelic, out-of-body experience "Noumenon" -- "There is no stronger drug than reality," he warbles, reprising the line over the hoof-pounding thrash gallop of album closer "Seed Awakening." While Enemies of Reality doesn't necessarily break down any new barriers for Nevermore, the album is a manic, panicked, pissed-off disc compared to other entries in the group's discography; and there's really no arguing with the band's consistency, especially when its top-shelf songwriting skills and musicianship are so willfully and skillfully on display. Even if fans long for the skills of past producers Neil Kernon or Andy Sneap, they'll still find Enemies of Reality to be a nasty little thrash record with plenty of depth. [The limited-edition import version of the album came packaged with a bonus DVD featuring three promo videos and two live clips from the band's 2001 tour.] ~ John Serba, All Music Guide
Karen Mason Blair (Photography), Kelly Gray (Engineer), Jeff Loomis (Group Member), Jim Sheppard (Bass), Travis Smith (Layout Design), Van Williams (Drums), Kelly Gray (Producer), Jeff Loomis (Guitar), Jim Sheppard (Group Member), Travis Smith (Artwork), Eddy Schreyer (Mastering), Warrel Dane (Vocals), Warrel Dane (Group Member), Van Williams (Group Member), Carl Peterson (Assistant Engineer), Kelly Gray (Mixing)
The worms on the album cover are a direct reference to the lyrics of the title track, "Enemies of Reality," in which Warrel Dane sings, "Open wide and eat the worms of the enemy." There are other lyric-inspired images in the booklet, namely an open hand holding a glowing sun (taken from "Ambivalent," where the lyrics say "The sun in my hand becomes my despair"). At the beginning of the song there is message played backwards that repeats the pre-chorus "we are the useless by-product of souless meat."
Enemies of Reality is infamous for its widely-disliked production by Kelly Gray. Many fans felt that the mix was inferior to that of previous albums and did not do the band or its music justice; specifically, various complaints noted flat drums, distant vocals, a lack of "punch" to the bass. In 2005, Enemies of Reality was remixed by Andy Sneap, who produced Nevermore's Dead Heart in a Dead World and would later produce This Godless Endeavor. The new mix was received pleasantly and gained the album a new level of respect and praise.
At the end of the CD booklet is a dedication to the late Death frontman Chuck Schuldiner, which reads: "This record is dedicated to Chuck. Let the metal flow into eternity..."
On a side note, the track "Noumenon", is named after the philosophical concept of things as they actually are, as compared to the concept of phenomenon, which is how things appear. The term was popularized by Emmanuel Kant who used it to help explain his philosophy of idealism. Lyrics from the song like "Truth has become media controlled", and "Reality is distortion of perception" seem to explain the concept of Noumenon.
