HOW TO MEASURE A PLANET ?

Here is a good way to travel. At this point, the Gathering had become a self confident and accomplished band, able to provide you with precious music and the right atmosphere. The first thing you may notice in this album is its extreme coherence. In the long run this could turn out a little boring, but in general you have the impression you are listening to an ALBUM, as an album should be: if not a concept one, at least a collection of songs and tracks each sharing feeling and approach to music. Songs like "Frail" and "Marooned" can gain back the spirit of the 1970s psych/prog rock and give it a modern and passionate form. The slow crescendo of "Rescue me" makes it one of the best songs of the 1990s. Anneke's voice is just perfect, vibrant and solid, but not intrusive and bombastic (Evanescence should learn much from this band, but they're just one of those MTV creatures for which the producer is more important than the very band), almost lullying (by the way, the theremin "solo" really drives me crazy). "Liberty Bell" is a very good rocking piece, while "Red is a slow colour" is an impressive listening for the way the band manages to merge different sounds. It's a pity that disc 2 is notably inferior to disc 1, with that poinless title track: Advantgarde is nothing for beginners! If they wanted to play with loops they should listen to some Stockhausen masterpieces from the 1950/1960s - the only idea I can get from the last quarter of an hour of this song is just how boring outer space may be. Nevertheless, this record, if you like Pink Floyd, Hawkwind, Krautrock and metal, has much good stuff to grant a good purchase.