''Weather Systems'' is the ninth album by the British rock band

Anathema Anathema, in common usage, is something or someone detested or shunned. In its other main usage, it is a formal excommunication. The latter meaning, its ecclesiastical sense, is based on New Testament usage. In the Old Testament, anathema was a cr ...

. It was released on 16 April 2012 in Europe via

Kscope Kscope is an independent record label that is part of Snapper Music, and a sister-label of Peaceville. It is dedicated to artists in the progressive rock genre. The label has released albums by Steven Wilson and his projects Porcupine Tree (m ...

and 24 April 2012 in the US via

The End Records The End Records is a record label in Manhattan that specializes in rock, heavy metal, indie, and electronic music. Early years (1998–2005) The End Records was founded by Andreas Katsambas in Pasadena, California, with the goal of helping sm ...

. The band describes the album as "not background music for parties. The music is written to deeply move the listener". The album was recorded in Liverpool, North Wales and Oslo, each place significant to Anathema's past, present and future. The record was produced by band members

Vincent Cavanagh Vincent Cavanagh (born 29 August 1973 in Liverpool) is an English singer and guitarist best known as a co-founder (and the sole constant member) of British rock band Anathema. Vincent took over as Anathema's vocalist following the departure of ...

and

Daniel Cavanagh Daniel Cavanagh (born 6 October 1972) is an English guitarist and singer who formed the British band Anathema in 1990 with his brother Vincent Cavanagh. He is the band's principal songwriter, a role he had previously shared with bassist Dunc ...

, as well as

Christer-André Cederberg Christer-André Cederberg (born 22 May 1979) is a Norwegian mixer, music producer and the owner of Cederberg Studios. He has produced and/or mixed the music of several of the biggest artists in Norway, such as Sondre Justad, Eva & The Heartmaker, M ...

. Recorded and released between the departure of

Les Smith Keith Leslie Smith is a former British keyboardist, once in the bands Anathema (1996, 2001–2011) and Cradle of Filth (1998–2000). Biography He was born in 1967 in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, England. Smith undertook session work on keyboar ...

and the full-time joining of live member

Daniel Cardoso Daniel Antonio Cardoso (born 6 October 1989) is a South African soccer player who plays as a defender for Sekhukhune United in the Premier Soccer League. Early life Cardoso was born in Johannesburg. His father grew up in Portugal, while his ...

, it is the first album of the band to not feature a full-time keyboardist since ''

Judgement Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct uses. Aristotle s ...

'' in 1999; instead, keyboard duties were shared between Vincent and Daniel Cavanagh, and drummer John Douglas. On future albums, Cardoso would replace Douglas as the band's primary keyboardist. The album's official track list was announced on 2 February 2012.

Reception

Terrorizer Terrorizer is an American grindcore band formed in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. After disbanding, its members gained recognition by playing in influential extreme metal bands, such as Morbid Angel ( David Vincent, Pete Sandoval), Napalm D ...

'' noted that the album had "a lot to live up to" following '' We're Here Because We're Here''. The review noted that the songs on ''Weather Systems'' are "not instantaneous" as the previous album, but "its highlight is the way it decides to gently ebb from a dreamlike state in songs like 'The Beginning and the End' into the huge crescendo of 'The Lost Child' and elating release of 'Internal Landscapes'", and concluded that "Is it another masterpiece? Of course it is."

Packaging

In the special edition, both discs come in a limited pressed hardcover digibook like their previous albums: ''

Hindsight Hindsight bias, also known as the knew-it-all-along phenomenon or creeping determinism, is the common tendency for people to perceive past events as having been more predictable than they actually were. People often believe that after an event ha ...

'', '' We're Here Because We're Here'', and ''

Falling Deeper ''Falling Deeper'' is an album of orchestral re-interpretations from British atmospheric rock band Anathema released on 5 September 2011. The album is a follow-up to 2008's ''Hindsight'', for which the band recorded different versions of their pa ...

''. Kscope store also has the standard jewel case edition with the album on CD format and no DVD. The American version of the album comes in a digisleeve. The special edition DVD can only be found on the European pressing directly from Kscope. Also, the DVD features the album in 5.1 surround sound.

Track listing

Singles

'Untouchable Part 1 Digital Single # "Untouchable Part 1" – 6:14 Untouchable Part 2 Digital Single # "Untouchable Part 2" – 5:33 # "Untouchable Part 2" (Live) – 5:43 # "Untouchable Part 2" (Live Video) – 5:43

Personnel

–

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

* Jamie Cavanagh – bass guitars on "The Storm Before the Calm" *

– lead vocals, keyboards, programming, electric, acoustic and bass guitars on "The Storm Before the Calm",

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

on "Sunlight" * John Douglas –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

, keyboards and programming on "The Storm Before the Calm" * Lee Douglas – lead and backing vocals ;Guest musicians * Petter Carlsen – backing vocals on "Untouchable, Parts 1 and 2" *

– bass guitars, Piano on "The Beginning and the End" * Joe Geraci –

Spoken word Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...

on "Internal Landscapes" *

Wetle Holte Wetle Holte (born 4 September 1973) is a Norwegian drummer and composer known for his collaborations with Silje Neergård, Kirsti Huke, Eivind Aarset, Wibutee, Bugge Wesseltoft, Anja Garbarek, and others. Life and career Holte was born in Ski ...

– drums on "Untouchable, Part 1" and "The Gathering of the Clouds" ;Production * Christer-André Cederberg, Vincent Cavanagh, Daniel Cavanagh –

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

Charts

References

External links

Weather Systems review on Prog-Sphere.com
{{Authority control 2012 albums Anathema (band) albums Kscope albums