Opeth - Heritage review
| Band: | Opeth |
| Album: | Heritage |
| Style: | Progressive rock |
| Release date: | September 2011 |
01. Heritage
02. The Devil's Orchard
03. I Feel The Dark
04. Slither
05. Nepenthe
06. Häxprocess
07. Famine
08. The Lines In My Hand
09. Folklore
10. Marrow Of The Earth
11. Pyre [DVD bonus]
12. Face In The Snow [DVD bonus]
Heritage poses more questions than answers. Have Opeth reached a creative cul-de-sac? Have they chucked their "Extreme Progressive Death Metal" for good? Have they finally shed their "Underground Garage Band" (I am quoting Akerfeldt from an earlier interview) and have ventured out into the Pantheon of the "mainstream" Gods from their hallowed underground temple so frequented by hordes of reverent worshipers?
Heritage has undoubtedly made many fans skittish who are in denial mode. "Remember Damnation? They are gonna come up with something killer next time!" But Heritage is no Damnation. Let's face it, Opeth are one of those great bands who never repeat themselves, and after nearly twenty years of their inception, and after eight "heavy-as-hell" albums (excluding Damnation); Akerfeldt and Co. have had enough.
This opens up several new avenues for the band and closes several other doors. Heritage is somewhat an acquired taste. It has a warm, fuzzy retro feel compared to their other albums. The guitars have a crunchy vintage feel to them, the drums are more humane (compared to the "Drum Machine" like sound in other albums), and Mendez's bass creates more havoc than ever. Akerfeldt's singing has considerably improved but is not perfect. He fails in bits and parts ("Slither", "Famine") but makes it up in his side project Storm Corrosion. Nevertheless it doesn't change the fact that he is one of the greatest voices in metal around.
Coming to the album, it does have some great tracks. The opening track is an exquisite piano piece which leads to "The Devil's Orchard" which is a standard track on its own. But add the Opeth logo to it and it becomes something pretty average. "I feel the Dark" is a deeply emotional track with beautiful guitar picking and mellifluous vocals, but then the song can be neatly split into two distinct parts which is somewhat odd as songs are supposed to be continuous no matter how "progressive" they are. However the main highlights of the song are "Haxprocess" and "Folklore". "Haxprocess" has an unconventional song structure which actually works and "Folklore" is somewhat inspired from Rainbow's "Gates OF Babylon".
Heritage is obviously a tribute to the obscure progressive bands of the 70's whom Akerfeldt greatly idolizes; it is his grand homecoming . The unveiling of his roots, which made him what he and Opeth are. The band still continues its show of dazzling musicianship and brilliant production, but most important of all; they have retained their soul. They have taken a huge gamble and have consciously sailed away from their comfort zone and that too at the peak of their musical carriers, which is admirable.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 8 |
| Originality: | 8 |
| Production: | 10 |
Written by SauradipGhosh | 29.05.2012
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Rating:
7.8
7.8
|
Rating: 7.8 |
The general consensus when a great band dares to move away from their original Death Metal sound is usually not positive. However Opeth have done it before masterfully with Damnation in 2003. They are back at it with one of the year's most anticipated albums, Heritage. Cutting to the chase: Compared to their previous releases, Heritage lacks character. Despite the song structures being very progressive rock and the vocals being crazy good, the absence of catchy guitar riffs or memorable growls is a downer. One can positively recognize Opeth as the artist, especially since a lot of the songs borrow tidbits straight from the Ghost Reveries period. Certainly they manage to perpetuate a dark atmosphere throughout the album, but the mellowness of the whole thing is borderline irritating to someone expecting their trademark sound. I know we have been forewarned by Mikael Åkerfeldt himself about this being a throwback kind of release. Still, I believe this would be either catchier or more aggressive. Nevertheless the album does feature good moments, mostly from the jazz-infused portions of the songs. Read more ›› |
Comments
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| ?apleee Mouthcrab Posts: 260 From: USA  |
Great review, but I disagree on your saying that Mikael's voice has improved, as I feel this is his weakest performance thus far. It is still great, though, and consistently so.
---- "Without judgement, perception would increase a million times."~Chuck Schuldiner Less coherent than Anal Cunt. Eric Brecht once liked my Facebook comment. Therefore, by the translative property, Chuck Schuldiner like my comment.
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| Unhealer Eclecticist Posts: 2311 From: Argentina  |
I can't believe you actually think that Martin Lopez's drumming sounded like a drum machine  I disagree with several points from the review but I liked this album too.
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| Doc G. Full Grown Hoser Posts: 9718 From: Canada  |
Quote: My exact problem with the album. It doesn't have much soul. It's derivative and completely lacks the variation their previous albums had. This just sounds flat and uncreative. I can see how it might be enjoyable (maybe I'll give it another spin - haven't really listened to it since it came out), but I can't comprehend why it would be 8.6 good. Even the review here doesn't give me any indication as to why it is above average. All this being said, I'll have to wait and see on the next Opeth release. If they go back to the dynamic progression of soft melodies mixed with aggressive death metal, I'll probably be more accepting this as a one-off fun thing for Mikael. Somehow I see this as just another step in the gradual downward spiral this band has been on for a while now.
---- "I got a lot of really good ideas, problem is, most of them suck." - George Carlin
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| SauradipGhosh Posts: 21 From: India |
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| SauradipGhosh Posts: 21 From: India |
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| BenWasHere Posts: 124 From: USA  |
All I have to say is that if their next release doesn't have growls, I am going to cry. It's not that I don't like the more mellow approach Mikael has been taking lately, but I think Opeth became so popular for their metal. Mikael has the most beautiful growl in all of death metal in my opinion. I really hope they don't stray away from death metal for good.
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| SauradipGhosh Posts: 21 From: India |
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| Doc G. Full Grown Hoser Posts: 9718 From: Canada |
Written by SauradipGhosh on 29.05.2012 at 07:33 Really? They've actually made themselves much more accessible with this one, while simultaneously making themselves less engaging. Quote: Why? They're using the same name they once made dynamic music under. Quote: No. Just no. It isn't - at all. For Opeth, maybe. On a broader scale, this is anything but new. I think that was the whole point of the album, Akerfeldt paying tribute to some of his favourite bands. Which is why I don't think they'll stick with this sound for more than an album. At least I pray that's the case. Either way, that is the main issue with this album; it is a predictable, derivative tribute album from a band that once did innovative things. Quote: Obscure? Howso? Quote: After hearing Heritage, it's actually completely wise to suspect Opeth are degrading. I think this might be another point of view from someone who thinks Akerfeldt can do no wrong. Especially when he can look at an album that was pretty much intentionally derivative, and say "It's a new musical direction".
---- "I got a lot of really good ideas, problem is, most of them suck." - George Carlin
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| testing... Posts: 2 From: Germany |
Written by Unhealer on 29.05.2012 at 06:40 Martin Lopez?  He left the band in 2005 or so and since then it's Martin Axenrot drumming 
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| Unhealer Eclecticist Posts: 2311 From: Argentina |
Written by testing... on 29.05.2012 at 10:38 The reviewer said that in this album drumming sounds humane and other albums sounded like a drum machine, I'm guessing those where Martin played 
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| Ace Frawley The Spaceman Posts: 1458 From: Australia  |
Agree with the part of your review where you say Akerfeldt has one of the best voices in metal. I think what made him so great was that he had incredible growls and very strong clean vocals but the growling is absent on this album, which means it lacks something.
---- The sun shines over The Fool...
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| bodomroy Posts: 56 From: Uruguay  |
Production could never be a 10. guitars sound awful, boring, flat..........the songs sound a lot better in concert, although when the old ones appear you can't compete with that.
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Posts: 21306 From: Canada  |
The way this review reads I'm surprised you didn't just give it a 9.5. I suppose Akerfeldt and co. will always have their fanboys.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| Michaelgpc Posts: 19 From: Ireland |
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| infernaldeath87 Posts: 171 From: USA  |
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| SauradipGhosh Posts: 21 From: India |
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| Vit Posts: 1 From: USA |
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| X-Ray Rod Skandino Posts: 18274 From: Sweden  |
Written by Vit on 30.05.2012 at 19:05 The problem is that Mikael was part of the 1% I don't know any growls that sound like the ones he does. Quote: This part only depends on the kind of bands you listen to so it's not really true.
---- Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29 Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
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| PocketMetal Posts: 750 From: Iran |
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| bodomroy Posts: 56 From: Uruguay |
Written by X-Ray Rod on 30.05.2012 at 20:11
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| X-Ray Rod Skandino Posts: 18274 From: Sweden |
Written by PocketMetal on 30.05.2012 at 20:55 It's pretty damn accessible considering how much this stuff has been done before. I also take Damnation over this anyday 
---- Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29 Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
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| SauradipGhosh Posts: 21 From: India |
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| Chobo_jokeR Posts: 427 From: Canada  |
Well if all we have to look forward to is Heritage-esque albums, I will not be paying them much attention. I've listened to this album numerous times, and even saw Opeth twice in under 12 months. These songs were boring as shit live. The second concert they played Demon of the fall and Grand Conjuration and those two songs were fantastic. This album is repetitive and dull. It has moments, but those moments are just followed by the same dull shit. The reason why I've enjoyed their albums so much is the variation. Now that they've pulled the growls the variation is lacking. Damnation was good, because it was an oddball in their catalogue. This...this is just mediocre. EDIT: I drove 3 hours to see them, and was disappointed both times (the second time a little less, because they played Grand Conjuration). Could say I'm just a bit of a disgruntled fan.
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| SauradipGhosh Posts: 21 From: India |
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| neiluria Posts: 119 From: France  |
Certainly, opeth style has changed, it changes radically, but it's still a very good album.
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| mz Posts: 4773  |
Well, I admit that I love extreme opeth more than soft, prog rock one, but also I should say that this album is not their weakest. Perhaps it was a right album in the right time for me but it is stronger than Watershed. Im actually totally shocked as I see Watershed is higher rated than this. Opeth needed to break their structure of clean/harsh/clean/harsh... music and this album does that in an appropriate manner. Now Im looking forward to seeing them again having an extreme edge but it if they repeated themselves by another "familiar opeth" album, I am totally sure that everyone was bashing them. good job, better than Watershed, damnation and deliverance for me.
---- Giving my ears a rest from music.
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| SauradipGhosh Posts: 21 From: India |
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| Fredd Account deleted |
Fredd
Account deleted Written by Unhealer on 29.05.2012 at 06:40 Yea, Lopez's one of the first drummers I think of when someone says organic drumming.
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| hadriel Posts: 257 From: Canada  |
It's a good album, and still probably among one of my preferred albums from last year, but I still can't help but feel like something was missing from this one. It's not even the lack of harsh vocals....Opeth are completely capable of releasing less aggressive sounding albums without sacrificing their innovative spark. There's just something that's not completely 'there' that separates it from Opeth's other albums. Although it's still structurally strong and the musicianship is impressive it lacks the organic feel that other Opeth albums have. The psychedelic elements are certainly running rampant here, but I would challenge anyone who thinks its a complete change in musical direction... it's always been incorporated into their sound, quite prominently in fact.
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| monti_84 Posts: 9 From: Costa Rica  |
8.6? Seriously? I felt asleep listening to this album. It is utterly boring. I think "Damnation" is a masterpiece, "Heritage" is nothing more than a shade of Opeth´s greatness. Bring back pre-Damnation Opeth. They have not been any good since 2003. Such a shame. 
---- The universe does not need a creator
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