The Gathering — Black Light District

The Gathering are celebrating their 12,5 years of existence with this new EP. It has been some time since their last release, the Amity single. So I was full of joy when this disc finally got delivered.

Three songs and a nice multimedia section are featured on the EP, which lasts about 30 minutes. There is also a secret track included, just rewind 3 minutes before the first song and you can hear it. The band experimented a little bit for this EP, and not one of the tracks sounds the same. Still, there is this typical Gathering sound present on all songs.

The first song Black Light District is almost 17 minutes long, epic post-rock. With small influences from a band as Godspeed You Black Emperor. The song starts with a few piano chords and then develops into this beautiful audiopool. Then it slows down for the last couple of minutes for a soft ending. Sarah Jezebel Diva (Cradle Of Filth, Therion) lends her voice to do narration on this track. I'm not a huge fan of her work, but suprisingly, she does a great job.

The second song Debris is quite catchy, but might sound a bit strange at first. Strange, because as far as I can hear, the song is made totally of samples from their own instruments. Looped, mixed, filtered and then Anneke's vocals on top of it. Pretty good, and different, that's what I like.

The last song Broken Glass is a preview for their next full length, scheduled for early 2003. The song is a piano version of a track from it. It's a very beautiful, emotional song. And because there is only piano and vocals, it sounds quite innocent and sweet.

So once again The Gathering impresses me. Because the band built their own studio, started their own label and are no longer under contract with Century Media, they clearly enjoy their new found freedom. Black light District is a great apetizer for their coming full length and a nice present to the fans.

Black Light District is only available online at the moment. The easiest way to obtain it for Europeans, is to order it from 4tune shop. Americans can get it at The End Records.