Natural Disaster [Digipak]

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Customer reviews

review by: pleb_uk date: 2005-02-05 rating:
a sad way to exit
"I remember them when they were a heavy metal band" is probably the lamest review ever, but it's true, and would be enough here.brAfter the colossal "Judgement", many of the hard rockin' fans that followed from the aggressive "Silent Enigma" and before, were increasingly disappointed with the quality of Anathema's output. Those who latched on to the "Eternity" record and the masterful "Alternative 4" may still find points to enjoy in this seventies-evoking, parent-friendly prog rock release.brBUT, the sophisticated riffs are gone, as are the folky, modal acoustic passages. Worst of all: the soaring technicality of their previous electric lead work is obviously missing. And I, for one, miss that bitterly.brThis album could actually be a lot worse, Anathema have at least skipped genre convincingly, if you like that sort of thing. Unlike ex-labelmates and founding fathers Paradise Lost whose slow evolution from Death Metal into Depeche Mode-esque dad rock was peppered with bad records, Anathema have failed so far to really screw up. But this album is a very pleasant, well-produced waste of guitars.

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review by: robadogs date: 2004-06-28 rating:
They just get better.
Although not as good an album as their previous two releases,this is still head and shoulders above anything else that has been recently released."Electricity",and "Are you there?" are two particularly excellent tracks.

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review by: howellzuk date: 2004-05-11 rating:
Too damn good
First off why was there nothing anywhere to say these guys were back. I thought they had finished, that's why I am so late writing this review, as I only found it was out a couple of days ago.br Anyway never mind that, the important thing is that one of the greatest bands to have ever graced this country is back, and with their best work yet in my opinion. Not even on the what I thought to be unsurpasseable Alternative 4 did they scale the musical heights of greatness that this album exceeds. Yet alas, it seems blatantly apparent that musical quality is not the requirement needed to achieve world success. I mean these guys form part of an elite in modern music, along with Katatonia, Pain of salvation, Opeth, Paradise Lost and Porcupine Tree yet they are all overlooked by the press( and I ain't excluding one single magazine here)in favour of souless, made for the masses rubbish like the Darkness and particularly annoyingingly, all this emo-core nonsense. More like an excuse to turn hardcore, another form of music I take an interest in, into pop music. Yet this is what they are all talking about. Well guess what I'm gonna stick with the music that my heart tells me to listen to, an example of that being the life-affirmingly good A Natural Disaster.br First off let me say that there is something truly special about this album, a similar feeling one gets when listening to dark side of the moon(Pink Floyd),Last fair deal gone down(Katatonia, who are criminally underlooked, surprise surprise), Grace(Jeff Buckley), Morningrise(Opeth),Remedy lane(Pain of salvation) or Dranconian times(Paradise Lost). In other words this is music that leaves you questioning how could such beauty and emotion be created through music. To me this is their deepest and most emotionally tragic of all their albums. Take for instance 'Are you there' which is a song that to me speaks about the pain of death and losing someone close to you. If I ahd to say my standout track I'd go for electricity which has one the most powerful piano rythym's that I've heard. Also look out for 'Pulled under at 20000 meters a second' which is one for the eeriest tracks the band have ever written.br All in all I think this is one the best albums I've ever heard and I think it's a tragedy of music that they have been ignored for so long and sadly I think that's the way it will continue.

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review by: date: 2004-03-23 rating:
Nothing Disastrous About This Album
Whereas earlier albums like “A Fine A Day to Exit”, “Judgement” and “Alternative 4” explored English melancholy from a hard edged, guitar driven perspective, this album sees Anathema using a more lush, electronic approach. There are nods to Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd circa Animals, Jeff Buckley on “Flying” and even Portishead on the title track, but the album has plenty of its own unique style and mood. There is a beautiful sadness and discomfiting edginess to the songs which sucks you into the moody, atmospheric arrangements. This is a very modern rock album and one which deserves to be heard and gain Anathema a much wider audience.


review by: lottofergie date: 2004-02-29 rating:
BUY THIS ALBUM,YOU KNOW IT MAKES SENSE.
WHY ARE THIS BAND NOT MASSIVE?! ANATHEMA HAVE BEEN DOING THIS BRILLIANT MUSIC FOR YEARS AND ARE NOT GETTING THE RECOGNITION THEY DESERVE.THERE IS SOME BEAUTIFUL KEYBOARD AND PIANO WORK HERE WHICH ADDS TO THE ATMOSPHERE AND COMBINES PERFECTLY WITH THE GUITARS. THE GUITAR WORK ON THIS CD IS AMAZING TOO WITH DANNYS TRADEMARK LEAD WORK AND SWATHING RHYTHMS TO VINCENTS DISTINCT VOICE WHICH SUITS THE HEAVIER TUNES (PULLED UNDER AT 2000 METERS A SECOND) TO THE FRAGILE AND STUNNING (ARE YOU THERE?) PERFECTLY.THE TITLE TRACK HAD ME THINKING OF PORTISHEAD WHILE 'ELECTRICITY' TOOK ME ON A BEAUTIFUL JOURNEY TO A PLACE ONLY ANATHEMA CAN TAKE ME. THIS IS ANATHEMA AT THEIR VERY BEST.I HAVE EVERY ANATHEMA CD IN MY COLLECTION AND THE WAY THEY HAVE MATURED FROM THE DAYS OF 'SERENADES' TO THE ANATHEMA OF TODAY IS EXTRAORDINARY.I RECOMEND THIS ALBUM TO ANYONE WHO LIKES REAL MUSIC.I LOVE THIS BAND.

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