The Official Opeth Thread: New Album now streaming

[Heretic]

Pretty disappointed thus far

what? It's like the greatest thing ever.

Sorry, but the album bored me for the most part. Perhaps it'll grow with a few listens but there's not a whole lot of memorable parts or vocal melodies or anything in my **humble opinion**.

[73109]

It really is. Might be their best since BWP.

Ten bucks says you've said that on every album since BWP.

[zxlkho]

It really is. Might be their best since BWP.

Ten bucks says you've said that on every album since BWP.

.... no I haven't?


I haven't even been an Opeth fan that long. I started listening after Watershed was released.

[73109]

Oh, then let me rephrase...

You will continue to say that for every Opeth album that will ever be released.

[zxlkho]

Cole, go listen to Machine Head or something.

[73109]

I will.

[zxlkho]

Alright then.

[ACID_FOX]

I like it so far, bit of a letdown though, not as "proggy" as I thought it would be.

[Perpetual Change]

While I don't always agree with Ryan, his opinions on things are usually pretty solid. You just gotta give him like a good two weeks to get out of his "BEST EVER" phase when he hears new stuff and after that you can get a pretty good assessment out of him. It's not just Ryan either, a lot of people are this way.

[zxlkho]

While I don't always agree with Ryan, his opinions on things are usually pretty solid. You just gotta give him like a good two weeks to get out of his "BEST EVER" phase when he hears new stuff and after that you can get a pretty good assessment out of him. It's not just Ryan either, a lot of people are this way.

I feel like I'm starting to come to a realization.


This usually only happens when I'm drunk. And I'm drunk quite a bit...

[The King in Crimson]

While I don't always agree with Ryan, his opinions on things are usually pretty solid. You just gotta give him like a good two weeks to get out of his "BEST EVER" phase when he hears new stuff and after that you can get a pretty good assessment out of him. It's not just Ryan either, a lot of people are this way.

Best post ever, though I may revise my opinion in a week or so.

[Gadough]

I was halfway through Slither, and I realized something....Opeth is my favorite band, and for that reason, I'm actually going to wait until release day to listen to the whole thing. I normally never do this, but this is an exception.

[zxlkho]

I was halfway through Slither, and I realized something....Opeth is my favorite band, and for that reason, I'm actually going to wait until release day to listen to the whole thing. I normally never do this, but this is an exception.

I really really really dont understand why people do this. I mean, it would make sense if you're getting the boxset or something maybe.

[Perpetual Change]

I was halfway through Slither, and I realized something....Opeth is my favorite band, and for that reason, I'm actually going to wait until release day to listen to the whole thing. I normally never do this, but this is an exception.

[Jirpo]

I'm waiting as well, of course

[Gadough]

I was halfway through Slither, and I realized something....Opeth is my favorite band, and for that reason, I'm actually going to wait until release day to listen to the whole thing. I normally never do this, but this is an exception.

I really really really dont understand why people do this. I mean, it would make sense if you're getting the boxset or something maybe.

Like I said, I never do this. Opeth is a really special band for me, moreso than any other band. I feel they deserve the respect I can give them by waiting until I have a copy of the album to listen to it.

[zxlkho]

Personally I don't think the band really cares when or how you listen to the album, but that's cool I guess.

[Gadough]

 

I know they don't. I'm doing it for me; it's more of a personal thing.

[Ultimetalhead]

I was halfway through Slither, and I realized something....Opeth is my favorite band, and for that reason, I'm actually going to wait until release day to listen to the whole thing. I normally never do this, but this is an exception.

Devin Townsend is my favorite person in the entire omniverse, and I still listened to Deconstruction the second I was able to. Lo and behold, favorite album ever.

*flame shield up* The lack of growls hurts this album very much.

[Gadough]

But...what if there were to be two omniverses? Would he be your favorite person in both?

[Ultimetalhead]

But...what if there were to be two omniverses? Would he be your favorite person in both?

He would be all 3.

[black_biff_stadler]

I was halfway through Slither, and I realized something....Opeth is my favorite band, and for that reason, I'm actually going to wait until release day to listen to the whole thing. I normally never do this, but this is an exception.

You accumulate more and more cool points with me by the day. They've been my fave since '04. Tell me when you got into them as well as some things like what the first song(s) you heard by them was/were and what made them stand head and shoulders above the rest.

[Gadough]

The first Opeth song I ever heard was The Drapery Falls. I was reading reviews on Amazon and stumbled upon Blackwater Park. Some guy wrote a review that focused entirely on TDF without mentioning the rest of the album. I thought this was funny, but it intrigued me enough to make me listen to the song. I was floored. At the time, it was the most amazing piece of music I'd ever heard. (I was a hardcore metalhead at the time; all I listened to was Pantera, Slayer, Megadeth, etc). The Drapery Falls is now my 3rd favorite Opeth song, with only Deliverance and Ghost of Perdition beating it.

So from there, I got Blackwater Park. I credit that album for getting me out of my "metal-only" rut. It opened up so many doors for me to discover new music I would have previously ignored. Prog mostly, but it taught me not to pigeonhole my interests into one genre ever again. The second album I got was Ghost Reveries. Oh boy. I'm not even going to try to describe how much I love that album. It's my favorite album ever. I've listened to it more than anything else, and I never get tired of it. I go back to it all the time and I'm always stunned at how perfect it is. I could listen to it on repeat for the rest of my life. By extension, Ghost of Perdition is my all-time favorite song from any band.

After those two albums, I realized how special this band was, and I got everything they've released. (Minus the Lamentations DVD, I still need to get that...) The amount of quality music this band has put out is unsurpassed. I may not be big on Orchid, but I adore everything else, including Watershed. I sometimes playfully knock on that album, but it's only because it had the unfortunate task of following Ghost Reveries. It's still a nearly perfect piece of work.  

Pinpointing what makes this band so special for me is difficult. It's one of those things you feel that's impossible to put into words. If I have to try, I'll say that the atmosphere the music creates, and the emotions it makes me feel, is what keeps drawing me back to Opeth. The greatest thing about this band is their marriage of beauty with ugliness, gentleness with brutality, and good with evil. They make me feel as if it's ok to feel extreme emotions of any kind, as long as there's a healthy balance. They cover the whole spectrum.

Basically...their music feels complete, and it makes me feel complete. When I'm listening to Opeth I can feel powerful enough to climb a mountain one second, evil enough to slaughter a puppy the next, only to be brought back in by the feeling that I'm at peace with myself, and that the world isn't such a bad place after all. Listening to Opeth is an emotional roller-coaster ride, but an immensely satisfying one. I never get as involved in the listening process as I do with this band. It's so rewarding to just kick back, relax, and let Opeth's music take me places and teach me about myself.

So yeah...I think that covers it. Opeth is awesome.

[Quadrochosis]

as is Heritage.

[Jirpo]

Nice post Gadough! Good read

[Zydar]

Pretty disappointed thus far

what? It's like the greatest thing ever.

Sorry, but the album bored me for the most part. Perhaps it'll grow with a few listens but there's not a whole lot of memorable parts or vocal melodies or anything in my **humble opinion**.

I agree. After my first listen I was pretty bored. But I know, you can't judge an album by one listen. I'll certainly give it more chances.

[fadetoblackdude7]

Gadough....Ghost Of Perdition is also my favorite Opeth song........ROCK!

[Gadough]

 

[black_biff_stadler]

Good post indeed Drew. I first got into them by downloading a few random tracks since I remember seeing them be one of those brief darlings of guitar magazines from '02-'04 where they always mention (seemingly) the same 10-15 bands each issue for months at a time. The first song I listened to was Demon of the Fall. To this point I'd only been into Death and Cynic as far as pure roaring vocals went and was somewhat neutral toward that style at that point but I put up with it in order to enjoy the excellence of the music itself.

I dug the ominous vibe of it and once they went into the sus2 chords that eventually have the "run away, run awaaaayyy..." part sang over them I was really taking notice. Once I discovered they had "another guy" who handled clean vocals (I thought they had two different singers at first since I'd never seen a singer who did both at that point in time) I was floored to hear how much it enhanced the overall sound. I also had downloaded all of BWP minus TFP and the title track. Bleak's clean vocal chorus and the solo section that occurs during the acoustic section was chillingly amazing to me. I also liked Lopez's use of specifically non-metal drumming too the way he mixed it in with the more standard double bass passages.

After spending seven years with them as my favorite band I'm kinda dying for a new one but no other band out there seems to do it for me as much. I need to listen to more shit.

[Dynia]

I've listened to it a few times and i have to say it isn't very good. Devil's Orchard, which I had been disappointed by when i first listened to it, turned out to be one of the best tracks. I also liked Nepenthe, Haxprocess, Famine and Folklore... the rest wasn't memorable at all.
Well, maybe it will grow on me.

[Jaq]

Still trying to figure out if I like it or not. I generally don't like the notion of an album being a grower-to me, if it doesn't grab you at once one way or the other, it's not because its a grower, it's because it isn't good-but this one could be the exception to the rule.

[BlobVanDam]

What the hell did I just listen to?  

Slither was about the only thing that even felt like a completed song. All I can say about the rest is that it reminds me of the Spinal Tap free-form jazz exploration.
Akerfeldt did an admirable job pushing his clean vocal abilities, but it really is lacking without his growls. The thing that made his vocals good were the contrast between his harsh and soft vocals, but he's never been all that strong a clean singer (although as this album is all softer, it fits alright). But that's not the major issue with the album. The songs just aren't there.

WTF/10.

[nobloodyname]

All I can say about the rest is that it reminds me of the Spinal Tap free-form jazz exploration.

"This is Mikael Åkerfeldt... he wrote this."

I thought exactly the same as you, Blob.

[NecessaryPain]

Still trying to figure out if I like it or not. I generally don't like the notion of an album being a grower-to me, if it doesn't grab you at once one way or the other, it's not because its a grower, it's because it isn't good-but this one could be the exception to the rule.

Disagree with that.

Some of my favourite albums have took a while to grow on me.

As for Heritage, it will take some time. It's different, but I do miss the metal. Even without the growls, I miss the killer riffs and beats.

[Heretic]

I agree completely with Blob... it definitely lacks the power of their past releases. And, I really enjoyed Watershed for the most part, though I find Still Life to be the album I enjoyed the most. In any case, Heritage has some cool moments and some interesting parts, but it's basically a big WTF moment for most of the songs, and, while I'm sure some will enjoy this, and I don't put down any who will, I don't find it particularly enjoyable myself.