The music of The Gathering is at times haunting, poignant, powerful, experimental, and emotional. Over the years they have recorded many great songs and released some fine albums that are considered classics by many. Together with their former label Century Media, the band has released Accessories-Rarities & B-Sides, a 2 CD set that will be the holy grail for loyal fans of the band. Containing rare live cuts, b-sides, unreleased tracks, demos, and alternate takes, this set is a joy to listen to and gives an overall snapshot of various stages of the bands career over the last decade.
The live versions of "In Motion" and "Leaves", two gems from the Mandylion album, were recorded shortly after Anneke joined the band and the release of that album. These are wonderful versions of these songs, complete with meaty guitar, lots of atmospheric keyboards, and Anneke's seductive vocals. The power of these songs is even more evident in a live setting. "Adrenaline" was a song that the band recorded and released as a single after they had finished the Mandylion album, as they needed a more uptempo and less doomy song to add to their live set for the upcoming tour at the time. This piece is just that, an uptempo heavy rocker, with faster rhythms, chunky guitar riffs, and soaring vocals from Anneke. Other highlights from the first CD are a captivating live version with orchestra of "Strange Machines", spot-on covers of the Dead Can Dance song "In Power We Entrust the Love Advocated" and Slowdive's "When the Sun Hits", a rare live version of "Frail", and some alternate versions of songs that would wind up on the Nighttime Birds album with different arrangements. Included here is an intoxicating rendition of "Confusion", one of my favorite tunes from that album, here in an early version that is a bit more dreamy and intoxicating than what wound up on Nighttime Birds.
CD2 is a fascinating listen as well, as it contains demos and instrumentals from the Nighttime Birds and How to Measure a Planet? sessions, the former engineered by Grobschnitt member Eroc. It's amazing just how different some of these songs sound in their infant stages, yet the overall impact of them is still as enchanting as the versions we all know and love.
Accessories-Rarities & B-Sides is a long overdue collection of gems from the vaults, and a must have for fans of The Gathering.
Track Listing
Disc: 1
1. In Motion #1 [Live]
2. Leaves [Live]
3. Adrenaline
4. Third Chance [Alternate Version][Version]
5. Strange Machines [Live]
6. In Power We Entrust the Love Advocated
7. When the Sun Hits
8. Confusion [Eroc Session] [Demo Version]
9. Shrink [Alternate Version][Alternate Take]
10. Frail [Live]
11. Theme from "The Cyclist"
12. Leaves [Live]
13. Life's What You Make It
14. Amity [Live]
Disc: 2
1. New Moon, Different Day [Demo Version]
2. Kevin's Telescope [Instrumental][Demo Version]
3. Shrink [Demo Version]
4. Earth Is My Witness [Demo Version]
5. Diamond Box [#][Instrumental][Demo Version]
6. Nighttime Birds [Demo Version]
7. On Most Surfaces [Different Version][Demo Version][Version]
8. Hjelmar's [#][Instrumental][Demo Version]
9. My Electricity [Demo Version]
10. Probably Built in the Fifties [Demo Version]
11. Illuminating [Demo Version]
12. Red Is a Slow Color
13. Travel [Demo Version]
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