ETERNITY

Every once in a while there comes along an album that makes a deeply significant impact on you. An album that sums up the utter power of music. While it plays, all you can do is sit there, and listen...allowing every note in every song to completely consume your entire being. All the joys and sorrows, all the pain and laughter, the beauty and darkness of life flashes in front of you at once, and leaves you breathless. If, in fact, a recorded volume of music can indeed make such an impact upon a listener that it significantly alters, or even changes, one's life, then Eternity is such an album.

The crushing Doom Anathema had been known for now seemed worlds away. Indeed, it was hard for me to get my head around the fact that this was the same band that wrote songs like "Under A Veil (Of Black Lace)", "All Faith Is Lost" and "Nocturnal Emissions". There was a certain maturity to these compositions that transcended genre. Album intro "Sentient" is a beautiful introduction, heartfelt guitar melodies over softly tinkled piano which then gives way to the fragile yet painful beauty of "Angelica". Vincent's voice had grown leaps and bounds from his vocal debut performance on The Silent Enigma. Throughout the entire album, he sings every word as if it was his last, unquestionably one of the most emotional vocal performances ever recorded. There is an abundance of keyboards here, and the music overall is less sonically heavy as before, with the band concentrating on mood and atmosphere instead of crushing weight. However, I hold this album to be much "heavier" than anything the band had done before it. Emotionally heavy. It is here where Anathema's lyrics really began to be as important as the music, so honest and from the heart, you know they dug deep to get this out. Their cover of David Gilmour's (Pink Floyd) "Hope" sits perfectly in the center of the album, flowing along as though Anathema could have written it themselves. The Pink Floyd comparisons came in droves at this time, but given that they are admittedly a major influence, I hold Anathema to be much better than Floyd. Much more personal, emotional, and yes, even better songwriters. Testaments to this are the despondent "Suicide Veil," the graceful splendor of "Radiance," "Far Away"'s nearly psychedelic spirit which then sees the band launch into a rocking ending, and 'Cries On The Wind", an ode to the pits of despair. "Ascension" lifts the desolate atmosphere up to the heavens and ends this journey, as a fallen soul taking one last look at the sky.

Eternity was the beginning of a new era for Anathema. Always having been synonymous with feelings of despair and sorrow, they still possess these feelings, but have found a much more fitting and appropriate way to get the message across. While experiencing this masterpiece, one cannot help but ask the questions we may never find answers for. Questions of life and of death. Anathema poses one of their own...."Do you think we're forever?". We are all destined for eternity, and Anathema's provided our soundtrack