Customer Reviews

A Natural Disaster

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is another successful addition to the Anathema discography, in the same vein as "Alternative 4" and "A Fine Day to Exit" (not as much "Judgement," even though that came out in between those) with its pianos and keyboards, and softer style songs. Anathema has been so far away from metal for a so long that I shouldn't even have to say this album isn't metal at all. Sure, some parts might be pretty heavy, but I still consider it heavier rock rather than metal. This album is very good but I still consider all 3 albums mentioned earlier better personally. And as always, Anathema?s lyrics are impressive.

It starts off calmly with "Harmonium," which slowly gets heavier, and is mostly a basic song? then comes "Balance" which kind of does the same thing. Here's the best part: Balance stops very suddenly and a new melody is introduced but seems like part of the same song. It starts off "Closer." This song is really cool; I don't know what it is that makes it so catchy and stuck in my head all the time. It has some very unique "robotic" vocals, and a very catchy melody with drums that keep building up. It is one of the few songs, on any CDs that I sometimes play 3-4 times in a row when listening to the CD. It?s definitely my favorite on the album. "Are you There" is a very emotional song, some may say it's melodramatic or cheesy, but it's not too much. It has prominent keyboards and Danny on vocals. "Childhood Dream" is a short but sweet instrumental, very melancholy and nostalgic. "Pulled Under at 2000 Metres a second" starts off with a very fast tempo, foreshadowing that it's going to be a relatively heavy song, and it definitely is. It contains awesome vocal melodies, guitar riffs, and lyrics. "A Natural Disaster" has nice female vocals and a very melancholy mood. "Flying" has amazing vocals and is emotional to the level of "Are you There." "Electricity" gets stuck in my head a lot? a peaceful piano melody with Danny's vocals. "Violence" is a lengthy, beautiful, elaborate instrumental. It starts off with a delicate piano melody that keeps blossoming and changing, and leads into some suspenseful guitars, adding heavier guitars, faster drumming and ethereal sounds along the way, which then fades out to reveal even more graceful piano playing. The latter half of this song is very sparse. Every keystroke seems so perfect, it seems like the ideal song to stare at the stars to, but that's getting too cheesy.

Anathema has practically detached themselves from metal at this point, and they are good at what they do now. I'm not one of those people that is so disappointed when a metal band completely changes: it's usually for the better.

I own all their albums and know how they've evolved. But the post-eternity-Anathema is something so beautifully carved onto rock music that one cant really escape its grip. My mood varies in marking "judgement" or "alternative 4" as their true masterpiece simply because when I hear the intro violins of "fragile dreams" & the immaculate literature in "inner silence" off alternative 4 and compare it with the heart ripping "one last goodbye" & the perfect composition of "emotional winter" of judgement, I get confused. For me the band has no main-stream and defined genre. It might get compared to katatonia or my dying bride or the sweet sounding opeth or even pink floyd-put-to-metal, but for me its a class in its own. "Temporary peace" was enough for me to get "a fine day to exit" and the cd cover of a lonesome boat surviving a disaster is more than enough to get "a natural disaster" as it speaks on its own about the profundity in their music.
A natural disaster has got nothing to do with their roots in terms of music genre. Neither has judgement, nor has alternative 4 and obviously not "a fine day to exit". It seems as if they've been changing the nature of sadness in all their albums, sort of like a maturity and persistence in melancholy in thoughts that makes them write those kind of lyrics and convert them into small musical master pieces. Now thats art. Malady in music is not about growling gothic stuff or screaming just like a guitar, its about maturity in the expression. My dying bride tend to do it, so does opeth with their exquisite lyrics.....but anathema is something else. While clinging on to its metal roots, it transforms into celestial kind of a sad impression marked with loneliness. This band is not for someone who likes to rock hard, bang head, go wild or growl, its for someone who likes to listen to depression. Every album offers a different kind of depression. A Natural disaster not only adds another beautiful addition to the band's discography, it also takes them to a well established position where the musicians are talented, love to experiment and succeed all the time.

I can't understand how something can be so beatiful yet you can't touch it, that's how i feel about Anathema's music in this album and in A Fine Day to Exit, whenever i listen to Are you there?, Flying or Electricity i get this feeling that i can't explain it also brings so many memories, how can such a slow song bring this ruch of feeling to one's mind?

This album is amazing. It is a natural progression for a wonderful band that does not get the recognition that they deserve. I've been listening to Anathema for about 8 years now and every album has been an amazing. Their sound is very unique, putting you in a musical melancholic trance. This album is so much different than their very early work (Serenades,Pentecost III), yet the "Anathema" sound is still there. My personal favorites are Are You There?, A Natural Disaster, Flying, Electricity, and Violence. If you like this album, please check out Eternity, Judgement, Alternative 4, and A Fine Day To Exit. If you are a music lover, and appreciate the darker side of human emotion, then there is no way you will dislike Anathema.

a lot of people dont think this album is any good. i cant see why. yes, it is a lot different then i excepted, and it took me a few listens to get used to it, but now i can't stop listening to it. i bought it when it came out in november in england, and i've been listening to it ever since. i love Are You There? it is one of the best songs i've ever heard. i don't know i just love the song, espically the warm, calming music. Flying, Electricity, and A Natural Disaster are also among my favorites.

This is definitely a mood-centric album. And after inventing a term, I have to describe it, so...

By mood-centric, I mean that enjoyment of this album is more based in a feeling than an appreciation of the songs themselves. Have a listen to 'Are You There?' (which is available for free download from Anathema's site...or was at last check), and you'll see what it means. These songs will put you in a mood, but you have to be half-way there already or it just won't work.

None of the songs here are particularly strong from a songwriting standpoint. It's in the atmosphere where 'A Natural Disaster' shines. Wind-swept backgrounds and blurriness are the staples here, and they work. For the most part. If you're trying to listen to this album on poor speakers, it'll fail miserably. Headphones work better, a surround sound system is best. Immersion is the point. Anathema have worked very hard to get the spectral effects down pat, and little flitting synth effects are the stars of the album.

Side note that's not really too important: the artwork for the album truly is beautiful. It fits very well with the music itself.

Anathema are going in a direction more towards the niche. I don't pretend to know exactly what they're doing, but I'll admit they've become more unique. Where they are right now is wedged inbetween the Anathema of 'Judgment' and the band Antimatter (which features a former member of Anathema and *another* Cavanaugh...how many are there?!). I hope they don't quite as far as Antimatter, but experimentation is fine by me.

I don't like to throw 5 star reviews around when there are so many other ones here, but considering the play time this disc has received in my car, I can't justify anything less. It's not as heavy or over the top like some of their old milestone albums, but there's an underlying seriousness to this one that, in many ways, is much more effective. Interestingly, my least favorite track is the title track, but the entire album works well to listen to from start to finish. No matter how much Anathema has changed, I feel like they still make songs that I have no problems identifying with. It's not perfect, and, yeah, some parts work better than others, but I can overlook those flaws because I never get the sense that they don't stand behind their music. It's a great album, and I hope listeners will allow time to have it grow on them.

In this album, Anathema combine all the best elements that characterize the band. No doubt, is the Anathema's album more melancholic and beautiful. I recommend it for all people. Word of a fan that know Anathema since old phase.

I have been an anathema fan for a while now. I like their slow, emotional, melodic songs the best.

When I first heard this CD I thought a few of the songs were really cheesy. I still sorta feel that way, as Vinnie continues to experiment with his vocals. These songs are pretty sparse and his voice gets annoying sometimes. Danny's vocals on the other hand, are awesome. I really wish he would sing on more tracks.

That said, I can't believe that no other reviewers wrote about how incredible the title track is. It is one of the best songs I have ever heard. And that is really saying a lot.

It is a repetetive song but the melody is gorgeous. It is dark, emotional, moving, and depressing all at the same time. If you enjoy exploring these emotions, then buy this album. I am not sure what the song is about, but I would venture a guess that it's about their deceased mother, who they also dedicated "one last goodbye" to.

That said, tracks #2 and #3 are awesome as well. They could really be the same song, because track 3 flows out of track 2. It is like an extension of track 2.

Overall, I think this album has more misses than albums like judgement or alternative 4. But it is still awesome.

I think this is the album which really makes me wonder why and how come this band is as unnoticed as it is. They've evolved with times. If you call this a commerical sound then your wrong. The entire theme around the album and the atmosphere is quite electrifying.
Stand out tracks:- Were quite a few but my favourites are
"ARE YOU THERE" "HARMONIUM" and "FLYING". I've been listening to this album for quite a while now. And from the moment I popped it in to my discman , I've liked it more and more.
Its nothing like Judgement and there is a varying sound but overall it hits! Definitely worth a buy!
Its slowly becoming by favourite ANATHEMA album.
The haunting lyrics are still not forgotten,
"Since you've been gone , I've been lost in time....."
What is truly amazing about this band is the fact that they say so much without saying as much as they want! "These days my hands are tied...these days I think you'll find....Im not me....now"