Anathema
Resonance 2

THE REVIEW

A waning, or perhaps rising, moon surrounded and enveloped by a sea of dense and dark clouds; but someone might quickly argue that it is an image of our sun. This interpretative ambiguity derived from looking at the cover of "Resonance 2", an excellent collection that Anathema released in 2002, is not very relevant. What I like to emphasize about the artwork is the evocative power it conveys, along with the music produced by the English: something enveloping, that warms and comforts you.

A band that has continued in its very long career, having formed in 1990, to grow, evolve, and always push forward with musical exploration; without ever forgetting their own past. A growth that is not yet finished; and I expect that soon they will follow up their last studio album released in 2014, that "Distant Satellites" which saw the Cavanagh brothers' group gift us yet another great album. But let's put aside the present and focus on the collection that pays homage to their more metallic period.

The first tracks are taken from the debut full-length "Serenades"; a work still raw, not even too well produced and played, which had as its identifying mark the primitive semi-growl voice of Darren White. Death-Doom that well suits a song like the opener "Lovelorn Rhapsody" with its suffocating and sinister movements; a slow and thick sound in its long progression. It's already time for the revised and updated version of "Sleepless 96", where those distinct Gothic-Dark influences begin to be seen, which will then be highlighted in the albums to follow.

And so it is right to remember their first masterpiece "The Silent Enigma", released in 1995, and talk about the eternal "A Dying Wish": over eight twilight and visionary minutes. A nocturnal ride that continues to rise in emotional intensity, up to the gloomy final act marked by the sound of Duncan Patterson's bass; the voice has passed into the capable hands of Vincent Cavanagh. A song that undoubtedly represents one of the peaks of all Gothic-Metal.

The intense pilgrimage of sumptuous emotions stops at "Eternity", another album deserving the highest marks. My choice falls on the robust and dynamic "Cries In The Wind", with its damnably Pink Floyd-like ending, especially in the vocal parts. And so we have reached the concluding chapter of this collection; they close the circle by paying homage to their, in my opinion, best album: "Alternative 4", the last work which sees the participation of Duncan Patterson in terms of writing, who unfortunately would leave Anathema immediately afterward. "Fragile Dreams" is more than a song: a delicate and subdued instrumental intro, which soon after explodes dramatically in a shiver-inducing crescendo..."Maybe I always knew, My fragile dreams would be broken... for you".

Ad Maiora.