Over sombre, unsettling experimental soundscapes akin to a mortuary Radiohead, Cave reeled through sprawling stream-of-consciousness imagery on the glitch gospels Rings Of Saturn and Anthrocene as though trying to babble away his grief. And then, to try to make sense of such senseless loss, he widens his frame to take in ‘ a drug addict… in a Tijuana hotel room’, ‘ an African doctor harvesting tear ducts’ and other disparate characters, his son becoming part of a cosmic human whole.Īlthough recording began in 2014, the glowering semi-electronic atmospheres of Skeleton Tree were understandably haunted by tragedy. ‘ You fell from the sky and crash-landed in a field near the river Ovingdean,’ he intoned in the first line of ominous opener Jesus Alone. Released the day after Nick Cave’s documentary One More Time With Feeling, which skirted around the death of his 15-year-old son Arthur in 2015 until its heart-rending closing reel, the album tackled Cave’s torment head-on. The Bad Seeds’ sixteenth album, Skeleton Tree. When real, life-changing tragedy strikes a master of dark musical arts, masterpieces can be made: Lou Reed and John Cale’s Songs For Drella. Back when it was first released, we though the trick would be to get people to listen to the fucking thing – turns out we were wrong, as its healthy ranking here adeptly proves. Songs like opener Leaving It Behind and the fragile, forlorn Springfield were simply further examples of the Liverpudlians’ unerring ability to make grown men cry, those now trademark vast crescendos and moments of spectral calm still hitting the target with masterful precision.Īs with most of Anathema’s records, this was one that fans of Elbow and Radiohead would love every bit as much as fans of Opeth or Marillion. There were still plenty of looped electronics and skittering beats lurking amid the sumptuous wash of multitracked guitars on the likes of Endless Ways and San Francisco, but there was also an urgency that highlighted what a great, straightforward rock band Anathema had become over their 27 years. Less experimental than 2014’s fractious and melancholy Distant Satellites, The Optimist showcased the blissful chemistry that existed within this particular line-up. Anathema - The Optimist (2017)Ī thematic sequel to 2001’s A Fine Day To Exit, Anathema’s 11th studio album was every bit as beautiful and absorbing as fans had become accustomed to. However, its impact with fans was significantly more positive, and it has since been accepted as an essential part of Radiohead canon.īuy a copy on Amazon (opens in new tab) 38. Both gained in stature from repeat listens, much like the rest of the album.Īt the time, this eight-track affair was touted by music critics as a minor Radiohead release – and one that fell short of the stratospherically high standards they set themselves on previous landmarks. The woozy, soulful Lotus Flower may have been a wry homage to Yorke’s friend and collaborator Flying Lotus, the LA-based trip-hop alchemist with a similar penchant for sci-fi lullabies and mind-expanding beats.īut the best tracks here were in fact two fairly traditional ballads: the mournful, Neil Young-tinged piano lament Codex and the languid, skeletal strummer Give Up The Ghost. Released online in February 2011 with minimal advance warning, Radiohead’s stealth sequel to 2007’s pay-what-you-like smash In Rainbows might have lacked the same headline-grabbing impact, either as music or as marketing stunt, but saw the band continue their commendably forward-thinking exploration of rock’s digitally deconstructed electro-jazz fringes.įor sheer beauty, nothing was quite as sublime as Nude or House of Cards from In Rainbows, although the weightless dronescape of Bloom and the glitchy, twitchy avant-muzak of Feral certainly came close.

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