Anathema (band)

Anathema
Anathema Live at Festimad 2007, 8 June 2007
Background information
Origin	Liverpool, Merseyside. England
Genres	Alternative rock Progressive rock Death/doom (early) Gothic metal (early)
Years active	1990–present
Labels	Peaceville, Music for Nations, Kscope
Associated acts	Antimatter, Porcupine Tree
Website	www.anathema.ws
Members	Vincent Cavanagh Daniel Cavanagh John Douglas Jamie Cavanagh Lee Douglas Daniel Cardoso
Past members	Darren White Duncan Patterson Shaun Steels Dave Pybus Les Smith

Anathema are an English rock band from Liverpool. The line-up consists of singers and guitarists Vincent and Daniel Cavanagh, their brother Jamie Cavanagh at bass, siblings John and Lee Douglas, respectively drummer and singer, and keyboardist Daniel Cardoso since November 2012.

The band was founded as Pagan Angel in 1990 by the three Cavanagh brothers, John, and singer Darren White, as a death/doom band; At the time White was the only singer of the band. The following year, Jamie left and was replaced by Duncan Patterson. Under this line-up, Anathema released their first EP The Crestfallen (1992) and their first album Serenades (1993). However White left in 1995; Vincent decided to act as Anathema's vocalist in addition to his guitarist function in the albums The Silent Enigma (1995) and Eternity (1996), which were going into a more gothic metal direction.

In 1997 John left the band, and was replaced by Shaun Steels for the album Alternative 4 (1998). Both Patterson and Steels left the same year, replaced by Dave Pybus and a returning John Douglas, while former My Dying Bride keyboardist and violinist Martin Powell also joined the band (Daniel Cavanagh was also acting as the band's only keyboardist, and shared this position since). The only album released with this line-up was Judgement (1999): the same year Powell switched positions with Cradle of Filth's keyboardist Les Smith who joined Anathema, and Lee Douglas, John's sister, was added to the line-up as a backing and occasionnal lead vocalist.

The band released their sixth album A Fine Day to Exit in 2001, turning into an alternative/progressive rock band. Shortly after the release, Pybus announced his departure and was replaced by the band's original bassist Jamie Cavanagh, reuniting the three brothers in the band for the first time since 1991. There were no new members in the band during ten years, with the albums A Natural Disaster (2003) and We're Here Because We're Here (2010) being released under the same line-up; however Daniel left Anathema from 2002 to 2003 to join Antimatter. Smith left Anathema in 2011, and Vincent and Daniel both assumed the function of keyboardist for the band's ninth album Weather Systems in 2012. The same year, Cardoso, the band's live keyboardist since 2011, joined as a full-time member.

History

Anathema formed in 1990 as a doom metal band, initially going by the name Pagan Angel. In November of that year, the band recorded their first demo, entitled An Iliad of Woes. This demo caught the attention of several bands and labels from the English metal scene.

At the beginning of 1991, the band gained a lot of attention with the release of their second demo entitled All Faith Is Lost, resulting in a four-album deal with Peaceville Records. Their first release under the label was The Crestfallen EP in November 1992. They took the material from that album on the road, touring with Cannibal Corpse.

Serenades, Anathema's debut LP, attracted a lot of mainstream attention, propelling their "Sweet Tears" music video onto the MTV playlist.

Anathema's first European tour was in 1994, and was closely followed by gigs at the Independent Rock Festival in Brazil.

In May 1995, vocalist Darren White parted with the band, eventually forming The Blood Divine. Rather than recruiting a new vocalist, the band decided that guitarist Vincent Cavanagh should assume White's role. This new formation debuted by touring with Cathedral in the United Kingdom.

The release of Eternity came in 1996, relying more on atmospheric sounds, and starting the transition to clean vocals; the album Judgement would later consolidate this style. A European tour followed the album's release.

Anathema in concert at Istanbul Cemil Topuzlu Harbiye Amphitheatre in 2005.

The next member to leave the band was drummer John Douglas, who departed in the summer of 1997. He was replaced by Shaun Steels, formerly of Solstice, who would also later play drums for My Dying Bride.

Alternative 4 was released in 1998. During this time the band underwent many line-up changes. Bassist/songwriter Duncan Patterson quit due to musical differences and was replaced by Dave Pybus of Dreambreed, a band which Duncan had played bass for during a short period, and not long after this Martin Powell (who had played keyboards and violin for My Dying Bride previously) joined the band for live performances. Finally, founding drummer John Douglas returned to the drums in place of Steels.

In June 1999, the album Judgement was released, marking Anathema's complete shift from the doom metal genre, focusing instead on slower and more experimental songs. This new sound has been likened to artists such as Pink Floyd, Jeff Buckley, and to a lesser extent, Radiohead. However, the essence of the band remained the same. Their songs continued to express a feeling of depression and, more often than not, desperation.

The next year Martin Powell switched positions with Cradle of Filth's keyboardist Les Smith, who came to be an integral member of Anathema.

Shortly before the release of A Fine Day to Exit, Dave Pybus announced his departure from the band and later joined Cradle of Filth. He was replaced by touring bassist George Roberts, and later by Jamie Cavanagh.

In March 2002, Daniel Cavanagh announced his departure from the band, joining Duncan Patterson's band Antimatter. However, he later rejoined Anathema in 2003 for the release of A Natural Disaster, and started their European Tour. This accelerated the changes in Anathema's tone, towards the atmospheric and progressive, as exhibited in album tracks 'Flying' and 'Violence'.

Upon the closing of their label Music for Nations after its purchase by Sony BMG, Anathema found itself without a record label, despite having completed an extensive tour of the UK with popular Finnish rock band HIM in April 2006. During their search for a new label, the band have adopted a more 'DIY' approach to music release, embracing the internet and releasing songs via their own website, for which fans may donate a monetary sum of their own choice. Despite the obvious lack of label-based tour support, the band continues to play dates across Europe, guitarist Danny Cavanagh also playing the odd low-key acoustic concert.

On 20 March 2010, Anathema announced on their website and Facebook page the release date of their next album. Their album, We're Here Because We're Here was released on 31 May 2010, on the Kscope label. John Douglas' sister Lee Douglas joined the band in the capacity of a vocalist during the recording of this album. She had previously performed on the two previous albums as a guest vocalist.

On 6 July 2011, it was announced on the band's official page that their album of re-interpretations, Falling Deeper, will be released on 5 September 2011. The album will be a follow-up to Hindsight and will contain new orchestral versions of songs from the past, as well as a version of "Everwake" featuring the vocals of Anneke van Giersbergen. On 12 September 2011, Les Smith's departure due to "creative and musical differences" was announced on the band's website.

On 16 April 2012, the band's ninth studio album, Weather Systems, was released via Kscope. The album entered the UK album charts at No.50 and the German album charts at No.19.

On 8 November 2012, Daniel Cavanagh announces at Anathema's official homepage that Daniel Cardoso is joining the band as a full time permanent basis as a key element of the band.

On 2 December 2012, Anathema announced their first concert in India. Anathema has performed at IIT Madras as part of the Saarang Rock Show on 12 January 2013.

Personnel

Members

Current members

• Vincent Cavanagh – rhythm and acoustic guitars (1990–present), lead vocals (1995-present), keyboards (2011-2012)
• Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitar, keyboards, piano (1990–2002, 2003–present), lead and backing vocals (2003-present)
• John Douglas – drums (1990–1997, 1998–present)
• Jamie Cavanagh – bass (1990–1991, 2001–present)
• Lee Douglas – lead and backing vocals (2010–present)
• Daniel Cardoso – keyboards (2012–present; touring musician - 2011-2012)

Former members

• Darren White – vocals (1990–1995)
• Duncan Patterson – bass, keyboards (1991–1998)
• Shaun Steels – drums (1997–1998)
• Dave Pybus – bass (1998–2001)
• Les Smith – keyboards (2000–2011)

Touring musicians

• Martin Powell – keyboards, violin (1998–2000)
• George Roberts – bass (2001)

Timeline

Lineups

1990-1991	1991-1995	1995-1997	1997-1998
Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards Jamie Cavanagh – bass Vincent Cavanagh – rhythm guitars John Douglas – drums Darren White – vocals	Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards Vincent Cavanagh – rhythm guitars John Douglas – drums Darren White – vocals Duncan Patterson – bass, keyboards	Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars John Douglas – drums Duncan Patterson – bass, keyboards	Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars Duncan Patterson – bass, keyboards Shaun Steels – drums
1998	1998-2000	2000-2001	2001-2002
Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars Shaun Steels – drums Dave Pybus – bass	Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars Dave Pybus – bass John Douglas – drums	Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars Dave Pybus – bass John Douglas – drums Les Smith – keyboards	Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars John Douglas – drums Les Smith – keyboards Jamie Cavanagh – bass
2002-2003	2003-2010	2010-2011	2011-2012
Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, guitars John Douglas – drums Les Smith – keyboards Jamie Cavanagh – bass	Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars John Douglas – drums Les Smith – keyboards Jamie Cavanagh – bass Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards, vocals	Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars John Douglas – drums Les Smith – keyboards Jamie Cavanagh – bass Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards, vocals Lee Douglas – vocals	Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars, keyboards John Douglas – drums Jamie Cavanagh – bass Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards, vocals Lee Douglas – vocals
2012-present
Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, rhythm guitars John Douglas – drums Jamie Cavanagh – bass Daniel Cavanagh – lead guitars, keyboards, vocals Lee Douglas – vocals Daniel Cardoso – keyboards

Discography

Studio albums

• Serenades (1993)
• The Silent Enigma (1995)
• Eternity (1996)
• Alternative 4 (1998)
• Judgement (1999)
• A Fine Day to Exit (2001)
• A Natural Disaster (2003)
• We're Here Because We're Here (2010)
• Weather Systems (2012)

Demos

• An Iliad of Woes (1990)
• All Faith Is Lost (1991)

EPs

• The Crestfallen (1992)
• Pentecost III (1995)
• Alternative Future (1998)

Singles

• "They Die" (1992)
• "We Are the Bible" (1994)
• "Deep" (1999)
• "Make It Right" (1999)
• "Pressure" (2001)
• "Everything" (2006)
• "A Simple Mistake" (2006)
• "Angels Walk Among Us" (2007)
• "Dreaming Light" (2011)

Compilations

• Resonance (2001), Peaceville
• Resonance 2 (2002)
• Hindsight (2008)
• Falling Deeper (2011) (UK chart peak: No. 168)

Videography

Promo video

• Sweet Tears (1993, from album Serenades)
• Mine Is Yours (1994, from album Pentecost III)
• The Silent Enigma (1995, from album The Silent Enigma)
• Hope (1996, from album Eternity)
• Pressure (2001, from album A Fine Day to Exit)
• Dreaming Light (2010, from album We're Here Because We're Here)
• Untouchable, Part 1 (2012, from album Weather Systems)

Official live

• A Vision Of A Dying Embrace (74 min, VHS in 1997 and DVD in 2002, also available through the 2008 re-release of The Silent Enigma (a bonus DVD), Peaceville)
• Were You There? (DVD, 2004, Music for Nations)
• A Moment in Time (DVD, 2006)

Bootlegs

• Live in London, U.K. (35 min., Bootleg, 07.11.1992)
• Live In Istanbul/TURKEY
• Live in Geneve (50 min, Bootleg, 23.01.1994)
• Live in Czech (60 min, Bootleg, 13.11.1994)
• Live in Białystok, Poland (30 min, Bootleg, February, 1994)
• Live in Greece (43 min, Bootleg, 1999)

External links

• Anathema (official website)
• Official Anathema page at Myspace
• Reviews and interviews at Chronicles of Chaos
• Live Footage and Video Interview from the 2008 Unplugged Show in Bucharest
• Anathema discography at MusicBrainz