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ANATHEMA Serenades Peaceville (1993/2006)
I always found it quite interesting how, at the same time that the Norwegian extreme metal scene was going through a transitional phase that found it's artists more preoccupied with performing arson attacks in traditional churches and solving murder mysteries, the equivalent English was being flourished and enriched by the arrival of a new wave of intellectual extreme metal bands such as Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride and Anathema.
Even though the above-mentioned outfits are classified under the same genre, there are certain elements in their music that proves that a certain connection did indeed existed, and others that put them miles apart. As a result, albums like Anathema's 1993 debut "Serenades" may seem like it is moving in a direction that was first set by the"oldest" of the genre Paradise Lost, but a more devoted commitment towards the album's ten compositions will prove that, even at this early stage, Anathema possessed all the right attributes that helped them evolve into the great outfit that we all know and love.
There is a common denominator that brings together these ten composition and that is the use of slow-paced heavy/doom riffs, still "Serenades" is quite a varied album that goes through many different moods and emotions, and which contains plenty of hidden surprises for those who are willing to invest in it. Darren White may not be the most gifted of vocalists, yet his Death Metal growls mix well with the simple but masterfully-conceived Doomy riffs of songs like "Lovelorn Rhapsody", the classic "Sweet Tears" and the Celtic-Frost sounding "Under A Veil (Of Black Lace), whose keyboard ending theme is one of the most emotional Epic moments of the album.
Another factor that proves how well thought out and neatly arranged "Serenades" really is, is the strategic placement of the more uplifting and groovy sounding compositions such as "Where Shadows Dance" and "Sleepless", with the former unveiling it's unique character in less than two minutes, whereas the beautiful mixture of melodic guitar passages and rhythmical heavy riffs of the latter justifies it's classic status even as these lines are written. Finally, it will be a crime not to mention the importance of compositions such as the beautifully performed medieval-influenced ballad "J'ai Fait Une Promesse" or the twenty three minute atmospheric instrumental opus "Dreaming: The Romance" - both of which were not only proof of the band's huge potential, but also an indication of greater things to come in the near future.
Any debut album that manages to reach the same high quality standards and is also capable of creating such strong emotions as Anathema's "Serenades", is an album that definitely deserves the attention of the metal community. In fact, I cannot see how any fan of genres such as Atmospheric/Doom/Death metal would not have already added this CD to their collection, but if that is indeed the case, I suggest that you check out Peaceville's 2003 re-issue. There you can find "Eternal Rise of the Sun" and "Nailed to the Cross/666", both of which were first featured on a 7" collectors release by Peaceville entitled "We Are the Bible" (1994) - I promise you that you will not be disappointed!
****½
Review by John Stefanis
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