A NATURAL DISASTER

Anathema's sixth album, when maturity has been reached by the band back in 1998 with their magnum opus "Alternative 4", and completed with their excellent "Judgement" the following year, is another step forward towards new horizons.

A near perfect album, an absolute gem, also very underrated and overlooked, that should absolutely be considered if you're interesting in this band. I was immediately hooked when I first heard the opening track, "Harmonium", one of Anathema's best and most powerful songs in my opinion. Basically, I fell in love with the album almost immediately.

In "A Natural Disaster" the Doom Metal influences are even less than in their previous effort, "Judgement", and Alternative and Progressive Rock reign supreme. The atmospheres are much calmer, a lot less alarmed and doomy. IN fact, all the violent moments are gone, replaced with beautiful, delicate songs, almost every one of them sublime and breathtaking.

"Harmonium" is, like I said, one of the best Anathema songs in my opinion. The dreamy and somewhat mysterious intro gets me every single time. The rest is also amazing.

"Balance" is another excellent song, not as good as the previous one, but still impressive in many moments. The mood here is soft, and the melody is exquisite.

"Closer" is one of Anathema's most sad and melancholic songs, probably due to the vocoder, and the synth's delicate and mysterious touch.

"Are You There?" is another beauty, a masterpiece. The vocals here are amazing, the synth's as well, the atmosphere is very ethereal, like in no other song from this band.

"Childhood Dream" is an eerie interlude, with some creepy effects that accompany the sounds of a baby. Perfect.

"Pulled Under...." is another excellent song, full of haunting moments, especially the powerful chorus.

"A Natural Disaster" is a great song, especially live (I saw them last night, great show!) and the female vocals are simply amazing.

"Flying" has a beautiful, haunting and calm chorus, The verses also are fantastic, and the arrangements are really good.

"Electricity" is another, fantastic song, with a vey calm mood and delicate melodies.

"Violence" is the song that prevents me from giving this album 5 stars: long, very boring at times, it's just not well done in my opinion.

To conclude, I absolutely loved the album and almost all the songs in it. A near-perfect album, essential for whoever likes this band.

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