Artist: Anathema
Label: Koch Records
Release Date: 10/9/01
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Title: Fine Day to Exit Artist: Anathema Label: Koch Records Release Date: 10/9/01 |
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Abyss's Review:
Anyone already familiar with this band could see this album coming. Like so many metal bands that chose to “expand” their sound, Anathema have traveled a long road. A road beginning in the metal realm, but ending somewhere on the softer side of rock. That’s not to say the album is bad, in fact it’s pretty good, if a little innocuous. What I do find frustrating about bands like this, is that they seem to equate sound expansion with more mainstream elements. Wouldn’t a band trying to break new ground need to move further away from the mainstream? The fact is that most metal bands that try to “do something new” are only doing something new for them. In most cases the territory they move to has been well covered by many a prog rock band.
"This would be much more original if there wasn’t already a band called Radiohead." And so we have Anathema. This album reminds me slightly of Terria, Devon Townsend’s newest product. This comparison is largely due to its laid back, Pink Floyd-like groove. And like that album, it is quite good. The melodies are soft, yet intriguing, and the overall atmosphere reminds us who’s playing. But if the soundscapes remain impressive, it is only due to proven songwriting, but even this seems a little overstretched. The melodies are mostly pleasant and relaxing, but are often repetitive or simple enough to warrant shorter song lengths. The result is an album that lulls us more often than it intrigues.
Repeated listenings abate this problem somewhat, but not enough. The musicianship is still there, but it seems somehow untapped, like there was so much more potential available. The bottom line is that this would be much more original if there wasn’t already a band called Radiohead.
Death's Review:
Is the new Anathema a metal album? Who cares? It is an excellent work of rock and roll art, and those fans who have followed the band's prior progression shouldn't expect anything less. One listen to Fine Day to Exit should make it abundantly clear that this is a band that does not care about bullet-belts, neck-snapping riffs, or whether they are more bludgeoningly heavy than the next band. Instead, Anathema fit quite nicely amongst other European art-rock/quasi-ex- metal acts such as Katatonia, Amorphis, The Gathering and, to a lesser extent (they're much heavier than the others) Opeth. If the latest releases from the aforementioned bands interest you, you'd be stupid not to check out the new Anathema. If, on the other hand, you were troubled by the lack of "metalness" exhibited on those albums, I doubt you'd be too psyched by Fine Day to Exit. It's really that simple.
"An excellent work of rock and roll art."
For those of you who haven't gained insight from the aforementioned references, let me point out that Anathema also seem to incorporate many mainstream influences into their current sound. Bands such as Tool, Pink Floyd, Radiohead and Ben Folds Five are certainly related in their approach. And the attention to all aspects of the artistic product exhibited by those references are certainly applicable to Fine Day to Exit as well. From the album title's seeming suicidal allusion to the interesting fold out album cover which depicts the remnants of a possible self- inflicted demise at a beautiful shore setting (reminding me somehow of something Dream Theater (A Change of Seasons?) or Fates Warning (A Pleasant Shade of Grey?) might do), each aspect of the record is thought out quite nicely. Musically, the songs are fairly catchy, the production is stellar, the mood is dark, grim and introspective, and the dynamics are employed to maximum effect. For point of reference, the opening track "Pressure" reminds me of a Roger Waters-less Pink Floyd jamming Pearl Jam's "Black", while another standout track, "Looking Outside Inside," sounds like someone took Opeth's distorted guitar sound from Blackwater Park and applied it to a Katatonia composition sung by the Cure's Robert Smith.
"This is only an album for those who appreciate metal bands who evolve their sound in a more artistic rock direction." In the end, this is only an album for those who appreciate metal bands who evolve their sound in a more artistic rock direction. If you are interested in that type of stuff, checking out Fine Day to Exit is almost mandatory. If you are looking for something to scare your parents with, you'll be sorely disappointed. Me? I like it.
Hel's Review:
Favorite tracks: "Leave No Trace" and "Panic"Would this album have made more sense to me if I were a long time Anathema fan? Obviously, I have no idea, but this album did frequently cause me to wonder why I was listening to it. What about this record is metal? Other than the occasional moment when the electric guitar comes to the fore and is able to be heard above the atmospheric keys, and a very grim, gloomy subtext, I can't find a damn thing.
That doesn't necessarily mean it is a bad album. In point of fact, it is a masterful album on many levels. But it is not a metal album. Again, this is not a bad thing, but it is always troubling to me when a metal band becomes so utterly mellow. Were I to pull out bands to compare them to (which you may have noticed I never do, and I will not be doing so now), they wouldn't be metal bands.
"In point of fact, it is a masterful album on many levels." Leaving the metal issue aside for a moment, I admit I found A Find Day to Exit to be a well-written and amazingly performed album. I enjoyed listening to it, and have nothing to criticize, except the points noted above. At worst, a few of the slowest passages drag a bit, but those generally seem to precede what passes for an aggressive section of the album, so it is difficult to complain about that.
So what it all boils down to is how you, personally, feel on the issue of the band's "metalness." I know it seems shallow and exclusionary, but it is the truth plain and simple. I, personally, am a metalhead primarily because I enjoy the aggression, brutal drumming, and distorted guitars, which many concede to be the delineating factors of metal. These elements are utilized infrequently, or not at all, on the disc in question, so you see how it becomes relevant to the discussion.
"Does it trouble you to think your mother might really like this record?" You will each need to decide for yourselves on this one. I know it's a great record, but it failed to get under my skin and really make me long to listen to it, and that's what I, personally, need to have happen with a record like this. I will concede that it is quality, and base my rating accordingly, but I don't know if I will be putting this one on again any time soon. If you are still undecided, ask yourself this question: Does it trouble you to think your mother might really like this record?
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