I Remain In Darkness... (EP) referênciado em Utopia Platafórmica

"The Silent Enigma”, 1995. Anathema, one of the bastions of British Death/Doom scene of the 90ies, along with Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride, released one of the best albums in the genre, and along with the music came the artwork. And that takes me to Athanasy. To start off, the cover is extremely reminiscent of Anathema and the mentioned release, and the fact that the band mentions that their intent, with this EP, is to pay homage to “Pentecost III” … that left my in an enormous state of excitement. Big fan of this stage of the UK lads, so I went in with a smile on my face.

Athanasy is a band from Odivelas, Lisbon, and have been around since 2021. So far, 2023 has been a busy year with the release of an EP and a Full-length. Starting off with the Anathema homage, I have to say that I was never a big fan of Doom, although I do enjoy very much a lot of the Portuguese bands that took on the Death/Doom genre in the 90ies, and of Anathema’s early years. In all honesty, I only gave the band a chance based on the Anathema and “Pentecost III” references… and glad I did. This is a massive Doom juggernaut. Slow, slower, the slowest… tremendous melodies and atmospheres that start as soon as you press PLAY!

“A Throbbing Grudge” is a majestic 8-minute-long showcase of the band’s abilities and repertoire. The vocals are tremendously larger than life! They absorb your complete attention, dragging you into this bottomless pit of Despair and Desolation. Doom clichés, but who cares when the product is this good?

“I Remain in Darkness” is another wonderful tune. The thing about Anathema, and this specific stage of the band’s evolution (evolution?) is the talent they had (yes, had) to turn negative into positive. The magnificent atmospheres that were thrown at us gave us a sense of sadness, while caressing us; I got that from Athanasy more than once. While the vocals, slow and very noticeable, leave their impression, pay more attention to what is happening in the background, and admire. Whenever S.P. opts for more melodic vocals, we get a new facet of the band, a more delicate and luminous facet of the band. Nonetheless, and according to the band, this music is a descend into Morbidity and the refusal to return to the light. Funny how the vocals, at times, lead me to that light, that salvation if I may.

“In Darkness let Me Dwell” is originally a composition by John Downland, from “A Musical Banquet”, 1610. I was unaware of the existence of such a piece, and quickly wanted to understand what was behind the band’s replication of such. Awkward, eerie, mysterious. A dramatic ending. This is an enormous rendition of Light & Darkness. Need to search a bit more.

Then my second surprise was discovering the band did another interpretation, this time a name that needs no introduction: Celtic Frost’s “Obscured”, from “Monotheist”, the band’s final (and best, I dare say) album. It is never easy to tackle a Celtic Frost tune, in my opinion, especially from the album. In their defense, Celtic Frost always had Doomish moments, and this piece is a good example of such. Nonetheless, congrats lads, you did a very good job. Martin would be proud of you. The female vocals - Leonor Correia - were an extraordinary addition. This is an amazing piece of music, one of the best ever put together by Tom and Martin, and one that deserves all this respect and maybe more. Amazing homage to an amazing creative pack of musicians.

Well… and again, a version of a tune that lives far away from Athanasy’s musical reality. In terms of lyric content, I dare say the band and the lyrics are very much aligned, and what the band did with the instrumental… very interesting. I had never heard the original, and I was not drawn into it, not because it was Heavy Metal, simply I did not feel the music. The band’s version is top-notch quality! Anathema’s Old-School essence lives in this version. Slightly different from what the band did on their previous versions, and even the original songs, this is a must listen."

— Galeria