The Gathering - Nighttime Birds |
Rating - 5/5 |
The Gathering have created a masterpiece in Nighttime Birds. At once hopeful and heart
wrenching, optimistic and apocalyptic, The Gathering seem to evoke all the tragedy and
longing of the human spirit. In the making of Nighttime Birds The Gathering have managed
to combine a wide variety of musical influences into a distintinctive and powerful brew.
The album absouluteluy defies classification, dragging the helpless listener into
wonderfully addictive web of sound. Any previous misconceptions of the band being either
Gothic or Doom metal have been totally shredded, spawning a totally unique and magical
album.
The soaring vocals of
Anneke Von Giersbergen act as guide through the emotional, almost Pink Floydian,
soundscapes constructed by the rest of the band. It is her excellent voice that really
seems to define The Gathering. The songs are generally slow, moody, and drenched with
emotion. The lead-off track "On Most Surfaces" is one of the highlights, and the
excellent "Kevin's Telescope" is a powerful exploration of human longing.
"Third Chance" is conspicuous as it is really the only up-tempo somg on the
album, but provides one of the most addictive hooks on the record.
Nighttime Birds is an
album for the ages, with seemingly limitless replay value. The uncanny ability of the band
to stir up simultaneous sensations of love, anger and desperation is indescribable and
must be experienced. Less metallic but no less potent than their previous album,
Mandylion, Nighttime Birds shows exponential improvement for the band. Admittedly, this
album veers dangerously close to not being metal anymore, but those open-minded enough to
appreciate bands such as Pink Floyd or Anathema's Eternity should have no problem
embracing this album.