Originally written by Russ Wallin.
The Gathering is an eclectic sort of group that have brought various combinations of musical styles to a mainstream audience. The Gathering has been releasing albums for over ten years and is considered by many as an atmospheric doom metal band. I’ve never considered them doom metal, but more along the lines as melancholic rock with some distortion thrown in here and there with an atmosphere that draws you in. I have several albums from The Gathering dating back to 1992 and have always given them credit for their songwriting ability and unique sound. I have found that The Gathering was a nice change of pace from the constant barrage of metal that I normally listen to. I’ve been able to appreciate their albums most when on long road trips. After hours of constant metal, I’ve found that The Gathering offers a chance to catch one’s breath…so to speak. I’ve also come to appreciate the genius songwriting that appears from time to time on various albums. The song Analog Park comes to mind. Needless to say, I was eager to hear The Gathering’s latest release, entitled “Souvenirs”. I found that the same beautiful female voice is ever present. I also found that the production has improved with each album. But unfortunately, The Gathering has taken a couple steps further into the smooth and mellow area of music, while turning away from the aggressive side of things. It was this push and pull of styles that really offered the listener a new world of sound to explore. The end result of “Souvenirs” was a nice sounding album that was smooth, like calm water, but which failed to grab your attention. Almost as if you were in a boat, surrounded by a large body of calm water, but with no shoreline to give you any point of reference. In the immortal words of Death Angel, it was like “Drifting on an endless sea, on our way to nowhere. Oblivious to our destiny. Slowly drifting on and on and on.” This would be a good album to have playing lightly in the background. But it fails to really grab your attention or emotion. I regret the fact that The Gathering has turned from the harder edge, which only leaves us with the tranquil and reduces the drama that normally makes for an invigorating listen. For what it is, this album is fair, but it’s certainly a far cry from what The Gathering has brought us in the past. And as for you diehard metal fans out there, you’ll be better off spending your money elsewhere.
