Review Summary: A quick glance back and a giant leap forward.
Anathema is unquestionably one of the best examples of a band who have undergone dramatic transformations throughout their musical evolution yet still maintained a high level of consistency between their amorphous styles.
Looking back at Anathema’s origins, we can see just how conspicuous their evolution is.
“Serenades” was veiled with foggy production, vaguely outlining helpless despair and sullen melancholy against a backdrop of endearing doom metal. At this time, the band even became one third of the fabled ‘Peaceville Three’ along with Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride. Treading down various pathways of doom, gothic and prog nearly 25 years into Anathema’s career, their sound has ultimately changed its appearance to relaxed rhythms and ethereal harmonies, particularly on the gorgeous
“Weather Systems” back in 2012.
No matter how many branches a tree contains, they are still attached to their roots and Anathema’s eleventh album,
“The Optimist”, is more connected to their origins than any of their previous albums have been for the past fifteen years. In a sonic sense, rather than misery and woe, Tragedy is the core feeling that is retained from Anathema’s origins. Most songs on
“The Optimist” echo the same tragic ambience as Anathema’s first few albums but in a different, more delicately refined manner. Whereas Early-Anathema might rely on a heavily distorted, grimaced riff, “Close Your Eyes” utilises stalking piano, dark vocals and trembling electronics to exhibit an eerie setting. Similarly, the hypnotic melody of the title track gently floats from wispy strings to piano and finally to guitars that create a smoothly calculated climax. Additionally, Vincent and Daniel Cavanagh’s, and Lee Douglas’ outstanding vocal performances throughout the album radiate a range of emotions from trepidation to tranquillity with unbroken clarity.
In a literal sense, the album introduces the setting: “32.63N 117.14W” is the coordinates for the last known location of the character on the
“A Fine Day to Exit” album cover from 2001. Continuing this unresolved concept of a man and his attempt to escape from his life’s trials as somewhat of a sequel,
“The Optimist” circulates around the character’s whereabouts and journey after he left his car on Silver Strand Beach. Anathema varies his moods throughout the journey. Initially, the driven riffs and relaxed, accepting vocals affirm that he is determined to find his purpose in “Leaving it Behind”, however, over the next few songs he appears lost and alone. This solitude and despondency are felt during the shimmering “Springfield” and spacious “Ghosts” through minimal instrumentation and faint cries during the latter- a reminder of his past interactions still haunting him. Eventually, the story comes full circle as he decides to literally take things “Back to The Start”. Due to the samples of a cassette ending, a child playing and waves crashing on the beach near the end of this 11-minute track, we are lead to believe that his decision was to reconnect with his past life, concluding the album, and the story, on a suitably optimistic note.
If Anathema didn’t have to contend with their own sensational albums, this might be considered a magnum opus in the progressive genre. However, due to the focused storyline,
“The Optimist” lacks the captivation that their previous albums such as
“Weather Systems” or
“Judgement” express. Nonetheless,
“The Optimist” is an absorbing album and one of the darkest Anathema have ever released, illuminated only by the optimism of a fictional character within the music. With that kind of depth, multiple listens are required to truly gauge the profundity that this album demands with the reward of an immersive experience.
