torstai 1. lokakuuta 2015

Anathema Discography: #13 Weather Systems (2012)


"Inside this cold heart is a dream
That's locked in a box that I keep
Buried a hundred miles deep
Deep in my soul in a place that's surrounded by aeons of silence"

The ninth studio album by Anathema is the densely layered Weather Systems (2012). Fingerpicked guitar melodies, vocal harmonies, and orchestrations are all over the album, and its uplifting atmosphere picks up where We're Here Because We're Here (2010) left off.

The two-part suite "Untouchable" opens the album and is one of the greatest things ever written by Anathema. The first part is a rock song, while the second is a more subdued piano ballad. These two tracks have got hummable melodies and rich arrangements that make them irresistible.

The rest of Weather Systems can't match the impact of the opening duology, but there's still plenty of good stuff. "The Gathering of the Clouds" isn't a great standalone track, but it's a good introduction to "Lightning Song", which is driven by Lee Douglas' fantastic vocals and has a powerful ending that always makes me feel pumped. "The Beginning and the End" is yet another piece of evidence that Vincent Cavanagh is one of the most passionate singers in the business, and I love Danny Cavanagh's solo and the beautiful piano. "Internal Landscapes" is a slightly repetitive song, but it's a perfect closing track, and the spoken word sections about a near-death experience are touching.

The post-rock influenced "Sunlight", like earlier songs featuring Danny Cavanagh on lead vocals, isn't a special song (I think there's a reason this one hasn't been played live) and feels like a filler track. "The Storm Before the Calm" is a 9½-minute epic that feels like two songs glued together, as the industrial-sounding first half is far-removed from the big orchestral ending. However, I guess it makes sense because of the theme of the song (the first half is the "storm", while the second is the "calm"), and I have to admit that the tune came across better when I heard it live. "The Lost Child", on the other hand, just plods along and doesn't stick out from the rest.

Weather Systems was a disappointment for me at the time it was released, because the best songs ("Untouchable Pt. 1" and "The Beginning and the End") had been released in advance of the album and made my expectations too high. After revisiting the album, I still think Weather Systems is slightly uneven and lacks variety. The highs are fantastic, but don't save it from being in the lower half of my Anathema album ranking. That said, I'm glad the record brought Anathema more exposure, because they've earned their success.

Rating: 3½/5

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