A SORT OF HOMECOMING

3.5 stars. I don't have the DVD of this concert only the audio. ANATHEMA were one of those bands I discovered early on when discovering this site. Their PINK FLOYD vibe and atmosphere along with the heaviness at times won me over rather quickly. Albums like "Judgment" and "A Fine Day To Exit" especially resonated with me. Man these guys have changed over the years. When I first heard "We're Here Because We're Here" I couldn't believe it was the same band but to my ears they sounded better than ever. So talented these Douglas and Cavanagh siblings that make up this band.

I feel I didn't do my homework for this one as they have released three live albums and I pick the acoustic one. Kind of a pet peeve for me these unplugged and acoustic records which is why Folk doesn't do much for me. We get 15 tracks with nine of them coming from the "Distant Satellites" and "Weather Systems" albums. Kind of cool to hear some old classics in there too. Man this is emotional music. I have mental health issues and had a rough two days last week and I couldn't listen to this record, just way too emotional at times. It was pretty cool though to listen to this band again it's been a while.

Two discs worth about 51 minutes each. I have a top three for each disc, in fact I'd love to have these six tracks on a cdr, an EP of moving acoustic music. So on disc one that three song run of "Untouchable Part 2", "Thin Air" and Dreaming Light" just melts me. So uplifting as well. You know I listen to these tracks and think this is an easy 4 stars but then a lot of the newer tunes done unplugged just don't do much for me. Disc two is about the classics like the opener "Temporary Peace" and the two closing tracks "A Natural Disaster" and "Fragile Dreams". Tough not giving this 4 stars but I need electricity! Regardless this is a moving album with a nice track selection.