AFTERWORDS

For those of you still mourning the departure of golden-voiced Anneke Van Giersbergen, let me tell you: As any of you who have ever listened to OCTAVIA SPERATI can attest, Norwegian Silje Wergeland is no vocal slouch. She has precise control of her 'instrument', most remarkably, even in her nuances and subtleties. Unfortunately, in my humble opinion, Afterwords does not take full advantage of Silje's considerable gifts. While I do quite enjoy the variety of creative adventurousness that The Gathering musicians/songwriters are taking on the songs represented here, there may be a bit too much variety here--leaving me asking the question, 'Who are The Gathering, really?" Perhaps they are the kind of artists like Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock, Pablo Picasso and Claude Pissarro, Ulver and Steven Wilson: unafraid to grow; drawn to try new things. For this I commend them. Five star songs: 'Echoes Keep Growing' (6:52), S.I.B.A.L.D.' (4:32), the DEAD CAN DANCE- like 'Afterwords' (4:01), 'Tuning In, Fading Out' (3:52), and 'Gemini III' (4:OO).

Four star songs: 'Areas'(3:31) and 'Sleep Paralysis' (3:15).

A 3.5 star album marked up on the strength of the excellent first half of the album. Some of the more atmospheric songs fall a little short of the standards set by previous Gathering albums.