The Gathering "Afterwords (Holland, Psychonaut Records, PSYN0019)"

Afterwords is an album by the Dutch rock band The Gathering, released via Psychonaut Records on 25 October 2013. It is referred to as either a studio album or a remix album, containing remakes of five songs from Disclosure, but the band consider Afterwords more like an EP. Drummer Hans Rutten has stated, "We all see Disclosure as our last studio album, and Afterwords was more or less a Disclosure after-party... It's a mini album, maybe, but it's a long album. But that said, we don't see it as a full-length album of The Gathering, more as sort of an EP kind of thing." The record is the last album before the band went on hiatus and bassist Marjolein Kooijman quit in 2014.

S.I.B.A.L.D. stands for "Sometimes it's better a little dusty".

Areas is a cover of synthpop band New Musik from their 1981 album Anywhere.

The title track features Bart Smits on vocals, in a clean singing style as opposed to his growling in the band's death-doom debut Always....

Taking the elements from the previous album, the band has rebuilt some of the songs, structurally sounding more or less similar. "Echoes Keep Growing" is just an extension to "I Can See Four Miles", while "Sleep Paralysis" ("Paralyzed"), "Tuning In, Fading Out" ("Missing Seasons") and "Bärenfels" ("Heroes For Ghosts") are more instrumental versions with a lot of emphasis on electronics. There is also some new material, the opening and wonderful "S.I.B.A.L.D.", "Gemini III" and "Afterlights", which is a short instrumental intro into "Sleep Paralysis". It also features a New Musik's cover of "Areas" and "Afterwords" with Bart Smits (the first vocalist of the band) on the vocals, both songs which are utterly unnecessary as they don't fit into the dynamics of the album.

—Review on Terra Relicta (6.5/10)

Track listing

1. "S.I.B.A.L.D." 5:02
2. "Echoes Keep Growing" 6:52
3. "Areas" (New Musik cover) 4:18
4. "Afterwords" 4:01
5. "Tuning In, Fading Out" 3:51
6. "Gemini III" 4:00
7. "Afterlights" 1:58
8. "Sleep Paralysis" 3:15
9. "Bärenfels" 8:12

Total length: 41:29

Besides the 3 songs released on the Afterlights 10 inch vinyl EP in 2012, this album brings two new "Disclosure" remakes. With elements from 'Disclosure' tracks, the band build completely new tracks and recorded 3 brand new songs.

"Echoes Keep Growing" is a remake of "I Can See Four Miles".

"Tuning In, Fading Out" is a remake of "Missing Seasons".

"Sleep Paralysis" is a remake of "Paralyzed".

"Bärenfels" is a remake of "Heroes for Ghosts".

The band name and title (as shown on the upper-right corner of the cover) are not actually present on the cover-art itself; they are on a sticker that's printed on the cellophane in which the CD comes wrapped.