ALTERNATIVE 4

Anathema begins to move away from his previous proposal, twinned with death metal and nuances similar to the heaviest doom. In that way, the band enters a more atmospheric territory with a recognizable Floydian influence, with some nods to Steven Wilson's Porcupine Tree and Clive Nolan's Arena.

Brothers Vincent and Daniel Cavanagh, together with bassist Duncan Patterson, compose a solid material and achieve; without losing their identity, locate the space where they develop at best their full potential. They do that with a greater presence of pianos, synthesizers, and guitars more related to the style of David Gilmour.

With pain and depression as recurring themes, there are no throwaway songs on Alternative 4, from the introductory Shroud of False with its delicate piano to the acoustic and heartfelt Destiny. All the work maintains a high level, anyway, both Regret with its almost 8 minutes of very well basted highs and lows and the powerful Feel, stand out especially.

The bonus disc of the album remastered in 2003 is an interesting little tribute to Pink Floyd (except Bad Religion's song Better Off Dead), but if it is about remembering their idols, I choose 24 minutes of the album's Floydian Memories Shadow Gallery Room V.