Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thought it could not get any better.....?, 29 Nov 2003
WOW!!!! What an excellent album from England finest purveyors of sorrow.From the opening song right up to the amazing instrumental ending,A Natural Disaster ranks right up there with Alternative 4 as their best works.Strong,sorrowful,melodic and melancholy,this album has it all.A far cry from early efforts such as Pentecost and A Silent Enigma,Anathema have matured and keep getting stronger.10 songs to listen to with the lights out and the candles burning.Well done boys.The only downpoint is that I tore the case trying to get the inlay card out.Brilliant,buy it now.
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2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Doom?, 12 Dec 2005
It's a little frustratring reading reviews of Anathema's albums when people don't seem to realise that a) they have abandoned 'doom' for something a lot more bittersweet and melodic and b) they did it a long time ago. It seems that everyone thinks that there next album wiil be a 'back to roots' doomfest. God I hope not.
I'm a metal fan but I don't like these guys earlier albums at all. They're much better at the stuff on this album. Very unique music.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
A Natural Disaster., 31 Mar 2009
The Liverpudlian outfit that has spread itself across a fair amount of the metal scene and is now touching on the rock scene.
The beauty of Anathema doesn't lie within their music as such. It's the very simplistic idea that their music, throughout their career, is extremely accessible. Even when Anathema heralded the old doom style that enthralled not only a nation, but a sea of fans worldwide, it was accessible. One could quite easily tap into the idea of Anathema's music because it is just so inviting. Whether Anathema were playing doom in it`s coldest most distant form, or this brand of mellow, but sorrowful atmospheric rock as it is tagged, was rather irrelevant. No matter what the genre, Anathema, especially in relation to their lyrical themes, were easy to grasp even on first listen. Though there may be a simplistic side to this British band, the emotion behind it is indeed very complex.
Their music, especially again in terms of lyrics, is universal. The pain and suffering that flows from the minds down to the hands and further more on to the instruments is universal. I've never actually met anyone who couldn't relate to what the band sing about. The lyrics, although never usually of great importance to me, are significant when it comes to Anathema. Although I'm certain the idea behind their lyrical themes could be expressed entirely through the instrumental side of their game, the lyrics still hold an important role, especially in terms of the audience and establishing a connection with them, which is again, what makes this brand of music so accessible. If we take a look at the lyrics, in their entirety of the title track `A Natural Disaster', we can clearly see the universal message behind their music. Most of us have experienced losing someone, whether it's due to death or otherwise. The universal nature of their lyrics is smart. It's a very powerful tool in terms of marketing your music if you can successfully manage to draw an audience in and relate to them understand with what you're singing about:
"It's been a long, cold winter without you
I've been crying on the inside
Over you
You've just slipped through my fingers
So life turned away
It's been a long, cold winter
Since that day..
And it's hard to find, hard to find, hard to find the strength now
but I try
And I don't wanna, don't wanna, don't wanna, don't wanna to speak now
of what's gone by
Cause no matter what I say, no matter what I do
I can't change what happened, can't change what happened
No matter what I say, no matter what I do
Can't change what happened, can't change what happened
no matter what I say, no matter what I do
Can't change what happened, can't change what happened
No, no, can't change
You've just slipped through my fingers
And now I feel so ashamed
You've just slipped through my fingers
and I've paid."
Surprisingly, my understanding of the lyrics spans over the entire album, not just one or two songs. Fortunately, Anathema have incorporated new methods into their music which makes it appeal to a larger fan base, and the existing fan base even more. The use of female vocals, for example, is a brilliant marketing tool. Anathema's song writing is regarded as some of the best for this type of music and one can certainly see why. With the inclusion of elements like female vocals, the mellow aspect of the music is significantly enhanced as the softer female voice adds a new dimension to the atmospheric qualities of this record. Subtle and sultry is what they are. It's aspects like this that make Anathema a winner. Melancholic pianos, marvellous female vocals and masterful acoustics. Anathema are brilliant at what they do and they do it with such ease.
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