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The Gathering
Sleepy Buildings
A Semi-Acoustic Evening
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Can a live album really be considered a band’s best work, even better than studio efforts said live songs are from? It’s close, it’s very close.
Holland
’s The Gathering, once a little known death metal band with some innovative ideas, had constantly evolved since their debut in the early 90s. But their real evolution wouldn’t come until singer Anneke Van Giersbergen joined in 1994 and the band released Mandylion, a hard, heavy and at the same time melodically beautiful album.
As Anneke further nestled into the band dynamic, the band itself began to evolve some more. With 1998’s How To Measure A Planet?, The Gathering laid the groundwork for what they would ultimately refer to as “triprock”; not quite trip, not quite trip-hop, and not quite rock, but certainly a little of all of the above.
Their masterwork would come in 2000 with if_then_else, combining the best of their rock, their experimental and their melodic, that even their most recent studio effort, Souvenirs, could not topple.
And yet Sleepy Buildings comes pretty darn close. Dubbed “a semi acoustic evening”, Sleepy Buildings is more a night of “stripped down” rather than completely “unplugged”. If you were fortunate enough to listen to Opeth’s latest, Damnation, then you already might have an idea of what I’m getting at here.
Electric guitars are used sparingly, giving a pronounced effect when they finally are. Keyboards hum, the bass -- with latest edition, Marjolein Kooijmans making her recording debut – strums. While it’s not all acoustic guitars and brushes, the album definitely has a very nice, laid back vibe that can really be enjoyed almost anytime, anywhere.
Compositions spanning most of their discography are present, with the exception for some reason of their latest, Souvenirs. I am assuming it’s probably because it was released through another label but who the hell knows?
The inclusion of material from Almost a Dance and Always..., which to my knowledge is the only The Gathering album to have death metal growls, is a real treat considering I’d never heard them perform older material. Don’t get scared, the old songs have effortlessly been “remixed” as it were to today’s The Gathering and are in fact a major highlight.
“The Mirror Waters” sounds amazingly fresh, as if the words Anneke’s clean and confident live voice sing were written exclusively for her. Likewise, “Stonegarden” and “Like Fountains” have aged gracefully..
In certain cases, songs here end up sounding better than their studio counterparts! This is the case with “Saturnine”, perhaps the only real “weak spot” on if_then_else, here it is poppy, catchy, brilliant.
Only one song, the previously bombastic “Eleanor” from Anneke’s 1995 debut, does not make a smooth transition to Sleepy Buildings. Instead of feeling like a mellow take on a heavier tune, it just sounds bland.
But one out of fourteen – which includes the all-new title track, a sweet little piano/vocal duet – aint bad odds at all. For me to say a live album, even a somewhat differently conceived live album, can nearly topple almost all other releases from a band with 15 years under their belt is saying a whole lot. Sleepy Buildings – A Semi Acoustic Evening, is definitely not your average contract killer.
Release Date: March 09, 2004
Tracks: 14 - Time: 72:41
Produced by: The Gathering
Format: CD
Website: www.sandandmercury.com
Track Listing:
Locked Away / Saturnine / Amity / The Mirrored Waters / Red is a Slow Colour / Sleepy Buildings / Travel / Shrink / In Motion, Part II / Stone Garden / My Electricity / Eleanor / Marooned / Like Fountains.
The Gathering:
Hans Rutten - Drums
Rene Rutten - Guitars
Anneke van Giersbergen - Vocals / Acoustic Guitar
Frank Boeijen - Keyboards / Piano
Marjolein Kooijmans - Bass
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