1. alternative… Read Full Bio ↴There are several bands called The Gathering is an:
1. alternative rock / progressive rock formed in Oss, the Netherlands, in 1989. Similar to: Anathema (mid/late albums), Pink Floyd, The 3rd and the Mortal (late), Radiohead, Portishead, Piano Magic, Talk Talk (late), Motorpsycho. However, in their first albums they were more similar to Anathema (early), Paradise Lost, The 3rd and the Mortal (early), Type O Negative, Dead Can Dance, Theatre Of Tragedy (early), My Dying Bride, Tiamat.
Initially, at the start of their career, they were a gothic metal / doom metal band. Their most successfull album in this period is their 1995 release "Mandylion". However, they shifted towards their current form, incorporating many influences from atmospheric rock, trip hop, space rock, dream pop, post rock, pop rock, alternative rock, with their 1998 release "How to Measure a Planet?" . Their historical singer was Anneke Van Giersbergen , who joined in 1995 for the album "Mandylion" but left the band in 2007 after the album "Home". She was later replaced by Silje Wergeland , who debuted in the album "The West Pole".
The band announced a hiatus in 2014, which was later interrupted in 2022 with the release of "Beautiful Distortion". The current line-up consists of Silje Wergeland (lead vocals), René Rutten (guitars and flute), Frank Boeijen (keyboards), and Hans Rutten (drums). The band had some line-up changes during the years, the most notable being Silje Wergeland replacing in 2009 the former singer Anneke van Giersbergen (who was a member from 1994 to 2007).
Initially they were in the vein of bands like Paradise Lost, Anathema or The Third and the Mortal.
Their first two albums, Always... (1992) in the death metal/doom metal style of the era and Almost a Dance (1993) that, though always regarded as a failure, played a part in the formation of gothic metal, were recorded with four different vocalists. Their subsequent release, Mandylion (1995), on which Anneke van Giersbergen sang for the first time, was a dark, haunting, and emotional piece of music. It was also one of the first albums of its kind in respect to female fronted metal bands, and it is still considered a standard by many female fronted metal bands.
Nighttime Birds (1997) continued in the same vein.
How to Measure a Planet? (1998) signed a departure from their previous style, while adopting an atmospheric sound with roots in space rock, shoegaze, trip hop, progressive and alternative rock. Their following studio albums if_then_else (2000) and Souvenirs (2003) showed progress and maturation of the band.
There is also an electro-acoustic live album Sleepy Buildings: A Semi Acoustic Evening, which was released in 2004, and was followed by a similar semi-acoustic tour.
Their 8th studio album, Home, was released in April 2006. The Gathering has promoted this album with a tour and festivals for the rest of 2006-2007.
Last March 24th, in Santiago, Chile, the band recorded a live DVD entitled "A Noise Severe" more rock oriented, to complete the previously released DVD "A Sound Relief", which featured a more acoustic set. It was released with little delay at the end of November 2007, together with live 2CD from same place.
On June 5, 2007 it was announced that Anneke is going to leave The Gathering in August 2007 to focus on her new project, Agua de Annique and her family.
After van Giersbergen leaving, the band started working on new songs and finding new singers. With finding Silje Wergeland from Norway the band again completed the line up. Silje has been the singer of the Norwegian band Octavia Sperati for 8 years including several other projects. 9th album The West Pole also includes two very talented guest singers: the Dutch Anne van den Hoogen and Mexican Marcela Bovio (from Stream of Passion). The West Pole is a very vital, atmospheric and extravert rock orientated album, with all the quality and power the band is so famous for, also with many new elements. The sound is guitar driven, alive and urgent; a strong and beautifully coloured album with haunting female vocals. It’s produced by guitar player René Rutten and mixed & mastered by Zlaya Hadzich, who also did the production of Souvenirs.
10th full length Disclosure was released in September 2012.
They released Afterwords in 2013. ]Marjolein Kooijman (bass) left only a few months later.
http://www.gathering.nl
2. Gothic Rock band from Pretoria, South Africa, active in the second half of the 1980s. The Gathering released the 7inch single "Night and Day/Falling Crimson" and a handful of compilation tracks, e.g. "Perfect Souls" and "Wooden Walls" in 1988. The Gathering’s only full-length album, titled 'In the End", is a labour of love that’s taken the better part of 23 years to realise.
Saturnine
The Gathering Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You had to screw me over
I guess you didn't know
All the stuff you left me with
Is way too much to handle
But I guess you don't care
You don't need to preach
Whatever on earth possessed you
To make this bold decision
I guess you don't need me
While whispering those words
I cried like a baby
Hoping you would care
You don't need to preach
You don't have to love me, all the time
You don't have to preach
All the time
The lyrics to The Gathering's song Saturnine are melancholic and full of heartbreak. The singer is addressing someone who has left them without warning and with an overwhelming amount of emotional baggage to deal with alone. The opening line, "The day you went away, you had to screw me over" immediately sets the tone with its bitter and resentful edge. The singer is clearly hurt and angry that the person they loved has left them behind.
The chorus repeats the lines "You don't need to preach, you don't have to love me all the time" which can be interpreted in a few different ways. It could be taken as the singer telling their former lover to stop trying to rationalize or justify their actions, and to stop pretending to care when they clearly don't. Alternatively, it could be the singer telling themselves that they don't require the constant validation or presence of their ex-partner to move forward.
The lyrics also touch upon themes of abandonment and longing. The singer wonders what could have driven their former lover to "make this bold decision" and leave them behind. They hoped that their ex-partner would care about their pain and the aftermath of their departure, but it seems that they are left with only their own sorrow.
Overall, Saturnine is a poignant song about heartache and the difficult process of moving on from a relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
The day you went away
On the day you left me
You had to screw me over
You had to betray me in some way
I guess you didn't know
I assume you were unaware of the impact of your actions
All the stuff you left me with
All the emotional baggage you left behind
Is way too much to handle
Is almost unbearable to deal with
But I guess you don't care
But you seem to be indifferent to my suffering
You don't need to preach
You don't have to give me false words of comfort or support
You don't have to love me, all the time
You don't have to pretend to care for me constantly
Whatever on earth possessed you
What motivated you to do this
To make this bold decision
To make a significant choice that affected us both
I guess you don't need me
I assume you no longer need my presence in your life
While whispering those words
Quietly uttering those phrases
I cried like a baby
I cried uncontrollably with the emotional pain I felt
Hoping you would care
Hoping for your empathy and compassion
You don't have to preach
You don't have to say empty words
All the time
Repeatedly
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: Anna Van Giersbergen, Franciscus Boeijen, Hendrikus G J Hans Rutten, Hugo Prinsen Geerlings, Rene C.f.j. Rutten
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind