LIGHTS OUT

Lights Out is the sophomore album by Antimatter, the band put together by Mick Moss and former Anathema bass player Duncan Patterson when he left the Liverpudlian band in 1998. Released in 2003, only two years after the debut LP Saviour, Lights Out explores similar soundscapes, mixing acoustic dark rock, moody electronic beats, and a dash of prog rock (Pink Floyd; Roger Waters), especially in the use of spacey synths and keyboards. There are occasional bursts of heavy distortion, but the metal influences are generally kept to a minimum. Vocal duties are again shared between Moss and female guest singers Michelle Richfield and Hayley Windsor, who had also sang on the debut LP. The minimally arranged and sparsely textured music offer a desolate backdrop to the singers' emotional yet hallucinated performances, leaving a lasting impression on the listener. Moss's performance is particularly haunting, showing remarkable progress in depth and tone compared to the debut album.

Songwriting duties are once again shared between Patterson and Moss, although Lights Out feels slightly more collaborative and cohesive compared to Saviour, almost as if each musician made an effort to write tunes in a style that would better fit with the other. Moss in particular seems eager to adapt his peculiar singer-songwriter style to the hallucinated musicality of his bandmate, crossing the border between melancholic acoustic rock and dark electronica in tracks like "The Art of Soft Landing" and "Dream". Patterson, on the other hand, continues to churn out the same obsessive Alternative-4 themes that had copiously emerged on Saviour, playing with piano loops, trip-hop rhythms, electronic noises and whispered vocals (check out the cameo in "Reality Clash" of the iconic piano motif from Alternative 4's "Destiny").

Another notable difference compared to Saviour lies in the warmer and more nuanced production. There is a lot of bass and deep tones on Lights Out, enveloping the listener and creating an atmosphere that is less menacing and more relaxing (and occasionally spacey, like on "Everything You Know Is Wrong") compared to the debut album.

For a sophomore album, Lights Out delivers in spades, guaranteeing 50 minutes of high-quality dark and atmospheric rock that will surely appeal to fans of the debut LP as well as Anathema and similarly moody post-metal acts. The record is perhaps somewhat less explosive than Antimatter's debut, as it lacks that handful of killer songs that immediately stand out with strong melodies and catchy vocals, like "The Last Laugh" or "Over Your Shoulder" from Saviour. Of the eight songs included here, "Expire" is perhaps the one that makes the stronger immediate impression, with its trip-hop influences interlaced with bursts of synths, while Richfield's desolate, slightly echoey vocals repeat obsessively for over two minutes the ominous line "I have a solution, a final solution". While not as hauntingly captivating, the remaining tracks offer an introspective journey into the dark musicality of one of the most fascinating bands to come out of the UK.