perjantai 25. syyskuuta 2015

Anathema Discography: #12 Falling Deeper (2011)



After coming back with a bang on We're Here Because We're Here (2010), Anathema made a follow-up to Hindsight (2008) by reimagining its early material with orchestral arrangements and piano. There's also drums, E-bow, acoustic guitars, and some vocals, but the record is largely instrumental.

Falling Deeper isn't simply a bunch of doom metal songs played without growls and distorted guitars: the band took some of the themes from the original songs and built new compositions out of them. "Crestfallen" is the most successful remake, taking the intro (read: the best part) and turning the slightly tedious 10-minute doomster.into a beautiful 3-minute piece.

"Kingdom" is another bullseye, featuring sung lyrics instead of the original spoken word approach. "Sunset of Age" has changed the least, keeping the original song structure and featuring gorgeous harmonies by Vincent and Lee and a powerful guitar solo by Danny at the end. "We, the Gods", however, is a disappointment, as the epic Iron Maidenish outro isn't included in this version.

The (songs that used to be) acoustic ballads are weak spots as well: "Alone" is almost twice as long as originally, and drags on way too much, while "J'ai Fait une Promesse" lacks emotional power without vocals. "Everwake" is pretty much identical to the original, only with orchestrations complementing the acoustic guitars. Luckily Anneke van Giersbergen's graceful vocals help the remake be at least as good as the old one.

I was mildly disappointed by Falling Deeper initially, but I've learned to appreciate it as is, though I still think there's room for improvement. The short length of the release is totally understandable, because hiring a string orchestra isn't exactly cheap, but at least one of the ballads could've been replaced with another rearranged doom metal song, such as "Under a Veil (of Black Lace)" or "Shroud of Frost". However, if you throw out all your expectations and notions of what the album should've been like, and just give it a spin without thinking too much, it's an enjoyable and relaxing listen. It's got beautiful arrangements on it and demonstrates that despite all the stylistic changes, the essence of Anathema's music has never changed.

Rating: 3½/5


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