LIGHTS OUT

After Duncan Patterson left ANATHEMA he formed ANTIMATTER with Mick Moss.They both share in the vocals, keyboards, bass, programming, guitar and lyrics. Duncan was with ANATHEMA from the beginning and left after "Alternative 4". He does get some help on percussion from Jamie Cavanagh who would eventually go on to play in ANATHEMA with his two brothers. The music here is laid back, atmospheric, dark and melancholic. I really like the mood here, and there are both male and female vocals.

"Lights Out" opens with these sirens that go on for a while then it settles with lots of atmosphere. Sparse keys here too before the male fragile vocals join in after 1 1/2 minutes. Acoustic guitar comes in as the atmosphere disolves. It's back though before 3 minutes with sparse keys,faint female vocals,acoustic guitar and electronics. Great tune. "Everything You Know Is Wrong" opens with keys as reserved male vocals join in. A nice rich sound before a minute as it gets fuller. Contrasts continue. Spacey synths are prominant late. "The Art Of A Soft Landing" opens with atmosphere as sounds come and go. Female vocals before a minute. Synths after 1 1/2 minutes. Drums become prominant as male vocals help out. It kicks in at 3 minutes with the electric guitar making some noise. Great sound ! Piano only a minute later.

"Expire" opens with piano that sounds like it's being played in someone's cold, dark basement. Percussion, bass, keys and synths follow. This is good. Female vocals join in as well. After 4 minutes she keeps saying "I've a solution, final solution" over and over with piano, percussion and atmosphere right to the end. "In Stone" opens with piano, percussion and keys. Male vocals join in and acoustic guitar as well. It kicks in after 2 minutes. Settles again around 3 minutes as vocals stop and atmosphere rolls in. Piano is slowly played then these spoken words come in. It picks up again after 5 1/2 minutes. Nice bass too. "Reality Clash" opens with almost whispered words and synths. Drums and bass after 2 1/2 minutes and male vocals join in. A calm a minute later. "Dream" has more energy but it's still mid-paced as piano, bass, drums and atmosphere dominate. Female vocals arrive as it settles. Contrasts continue between the fuller sections and mellow passages. Lots of synths and percussion late. "Terminal" is the closing instrumental. Laid back with acoustic guitar to start. Piano and atmosphere follows. Powerful sounds start to come and go before 4 minutes. It settles late to end it.

I like this style of music. It's a nice change once in a while to veg out to with headphones on.

After the gothic trip hop debut, Duncan Patterson and Michael Moss returned with a more organic sounding album. The hand from trip hop can still be felt, but it is a dark and looming hand, casting a sombre and colourless blanket over the mood.

The great thing about it is that it doesn't need any of the overtly dramatic or pathetic tricks that goth rock often resorts to. The sound is mostly sparse, featuring soft warm vocals and some moody piano, acoustic guitars and modest rhythms. The vocals duties are split between the male and female vocalists. The female vocals are excellent and Moss has a modest but touching voice that is slightly similar to other cheery vocalists such as Kevin Moore and the Cavanagh brothers from Anathema.

An album with sparse musical arrangements as this one has to go on the intensity of its mood and the qualities of the song writing. Unfortunately, the mood can get a bit monotonous after a while, all songs are a bit too similar and not all of them manage to appeal to me equally. The album highlights are Everything You Know, Expire and Dream.

Fans of Anathema who haven't checked out this band yet must sure give them a try, but I doubt they have the potential to win over anybody else. Still, if you're in need for a decent album with nice moody rock songs, this might be the one. 3.5 stars.