Alternative 4 is the fourth album by the British rock band Anathema. It was released on 22 June 1998 through Peaceville Records. Like the band's third album Eternity, Alternative 4 is sung with clean vocals.
The album's title is derived from Leslie Watkins' book Alternative 3. Bassist and co-principal songwriter Duncan Patterson had read it a few years before they wrote the album. The book is about conspiracy theories, and most songs on Alternative 4 are about trust. Patterson is now playing in a band with the same title, and the songs are based on similar themes. In keeping with the theme of conspiracies, the album cover is a modified photo of American astronautBuzz Aldrin (depicted as an angel) on the Moon during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission - this is in reference to the conspiracy of the Moon landings.[citation needed]
It is the last with Patterson and the only album released without John Douglas. He was replaced by Shaun Steels in 1997 but returned in 1998.
