Written by Claudric on 21.11.2024 at 18:06

You're right, I should'nt have said "obviously".

Though, the sound on The Last Will... being much closer to the albums that are largely praised and that got Opeth so popular makes it more likely to be appreciated here.

This would'nt be true if it happened to be a bad album, as you imply, which it is in no way.

Nah, I'm not implying it's a bad album. I'm saying that there is something missing in it, melodies being one thing.

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Written by Claudric on 21.11.2024 at 18:06

You're right, I should'nt have said "obviously".

Though, the sound on The Last Will... being much closer to the albums that are largely praised and that got Opeth so popular makes it more likely to be appreciated here.

This would'nt be true if it happened to be a bad album, as you imply, which it is in no way.

I don’t actually think it’s much closer at all. It has growls sure, but if you listened to the instrumental tracks on their own they’re worlds apart from the older albums. Definitely don’t feel the darker vibe of the old albums on this one.

Written by thebenfo on 19.11.2024 at 16:04

Yes, Mikael is growling. It doesn't take a trained ear to realize his technique is different these days. I suspect that he's tired and may have injured his voice some time over the last ten or so years. The growling just doesn't sound the same.

The injury thing is a commonly heard theory, but if he'd injured himself doing growls I'd expect it would show up in his clean singing as well, and his cleans are still great.

Mostly what I hear is that they are layering the growls less on the current recordings. Those older recordings have a bunch of different vocal tracks all stacked on top of each other to create that huge feeling. You can hear that he's got a high and a low growl combined at the minimum on BWP and GR. The side effect of that is that it's harder to make out the consonants and lyrics with all those layers blurring the words a bit.

And, yes, I know that he sounds different live as well, but that's a different set of causes and effects from his sound on record.

Very solid outing. thank god the 70s hippie phase is over

Nothing compared to what they used to put out but still better than their last 4 albums IMO. 8.2/10 for me.

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Written by Claudric on 21.11.2024 at 22:31

Written by Vellichor on 21.11.2024 at 20:35

I don’t actually think it’s much closer at all. It has growls sure, but if you listened to the instrumental tracks on their own they’re worlds apart from the older albums. Definitely don’t feel the darker vibe of the old albums on this one.

I'm very well aware that this album isn't a complete return to their old style and that it kept the funny-singing/proggy-organ thing going on since Heritage.

But to say that the sound of The Last Will... isn't much closer to Blackwater Park than In Cauda Venenum or Heritage ? That is a bold statement.

And why would you compare those albums with instrumental tracks only ? The voice matters as much as any other instrument, maybe even more, as it is part of what defines a band's sound and identity.

It's like that comment above with many likes saying that growling doesn't guarantee a good album. Likely NO ONE ever claimed that it does... But as it has been a big part of Opeth's sound and identity, people want it back and are excited that it is. I don't see the matter with it.

Not everyone listens to music like a classical composer who would only care about the melody. Especially in rock and heavy metal, the texture of the sound is almost what defines the genre. If Van Halen played Eruption with a banjo, or 3 octaves above, it wouldn't have had the same effect on the scene, wouldn't it ? Same goes with the texture of the voice.

Mikael has a great clean voice, but him not using his growls is like Dimebag Darrell only using the two highest guitar strings.

Growls matter. Distortion matters. Mixing and production matter also.

I think you misunderstand me. I’m not talking about instrumentals like Patterns in the Ivy, I’m talking about the instruments behind the vocals, which sounds nothing like the older albums. The melodies sound nothing like older albums. Even the growls don’t really sound the same. I think this has way more in common with ICV than BWP. But I’m in no way saying it’s a bad thing, I just disagree with that point.

And I don’t see where you got the idea I was saying I didn’t want growls, but go off.

Great album! Way better than the last 4 (not that they are bad, but it's not what I want to hear from Opeth).
That being said, it's lacking the crazy atmosphere that it was captured between Still Life and Ghost Reveries, but at this point, I'm just glad that there is still some Metal in Opeth's music.
The album is pretty consistent throughout §1 to §7 and Ian Anderson's flute playing is a nice touch here and there.
Last song for me is a huge disappointment, I was hoping for a heavy epic to close the album and is by far my least favorite, simplistic structure and chorus and really doesn't go anywhere.
8.6/10 for me

Excellent 👌 🤤🤤🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘

Doesn't get more progressive than that. Definitely progressive metal album of the year. Definitely a hallmark of their catalogue.
But I'm struggling with the idea of returning to it in the future. I'm not sure I found anything to come back to. Except maybe for Walt's drumming. He blends so seamlessly with the band yet there's so much going on. Absolute powerhouse. Mike's vocals are sublime too. Everyone's performance is.

Does it deserve to be in the Top200? I don't know. I wouldn't put it above Damnation personally, more so Deliverance. But maybe it's for nostalgic reasons.

Haha the most overrated metal band on MetalStorm
Hope this album is good

The most shocking thing to me is the short song lengths! The songs are pretty good. I mean, they are and have always been masterful crafters of songs and experts at their instruments. But that doesn't necessarily mean that it sticks and that I want to listen to it more. I think for me the only standout it §2, at this moment in time.

Written by DenOr on 22.11.2024 at 05:47

Haha the most overrated metal band on MetalStorm

Really?! I doubt that.

As usual I admire the concept and the high level of musicianship which was always going to be top quality, but aside from a few moments scattered throughout there's nothing that really grips me. This has always been a hit and miss band for me even from their early work, some of their craft I find sensational other times it doesn't do anything for me.

Edit: Stand-out moment in the entire album for me up to now is actually the solo at the end of the last track, and what's quite unusual is I'm detecting an influence of Jethro Tull in certain parts.

I like it but it doesn't have something like Faith In Others or Allting Tar Slut that really touches my soul. Still, this is a very good album and there is a lot to take in. It feels like a new direction for Opeth, but then they've never made the same album twice.

§1 is still the best track. I personally feel the production is pretty bad in comparison to their best, mixing feels very inconsistent and a lot of the background instruments sound like midi. §2 was frankly unbearable to listen to, and I think the atmosphere they're going for is just plain weird and doesn't really work outside of §1. Little to no memorable melodies either, nothing on the album sticks. I'll relisten a couple times though, Opeth albums usually get better with each listen.

This is definitely their best album since Watershed. The album has some problems of dragging in some places, but overall, it not only has the shadow of Opeth's past style, but also adds new elements to it, with a unique temperament. I originally wanted to give it a score of 7, but I really like the last song, so I decided to give it a score of 8.

Written by John doe on 22.11.2024 at 07:57

Written by DenOr on 22.11.2024 at 05:47

Haha the most overrated metal band on MetalStorm

Really?! I doubt that.

This is indeed true. On this site, Opeth's albums have perhaps the highest fan rating ratio of any band.

Written by Crawltipede on 22.11.2024 at 10:25

Written by John doe on 22.11.2024 at 07:57

Written by DenOr on 22.11.2024 at 05:47

Haha the most overrated metal band on MetalStorm

Really?! I doubt that.

This is indeed true. On this site, Opeth's albums have perhaps the highest fan rating ratio of any band.

Could it be because those albums deserve the appreciation and love they get?

Also, he said "the most overrated". Hardly so.

Written by AndyMetalFreak on 22.11.2024 at 08:02

Edit: Stand-out moment in the entire album for me up to now is actually the solo at the end of the last track, and what's quite unusual is I'm detecting an influence of Jethro Tull in certain parts.

I wouldn't say that's surprising or unusual, there have been a lot of Jethro Tull influences on the last few albums, and this one even features Ian Anderson.
Agreed about that solo being a highlight.

Written by John doe on 22.11.2024 at 10:38

Written by Crawltipede on 22.11.2024 at 10:25

Written by John doe on 22.11.2024 at 07:57

Written by DenOr on 22.11.2024 at 05:47

Haha the most overrated metal band on MetalStorm

Really?! I doubt that.

This is indeed true. On this site, Opeth's albums have perhaps the highest fan rating ratio of any band.

Could it be because those albums deserve the appreciation and love they get?

Also, he said "the most overrated". Hardly so.

Oh, yes. Using the word "most" is not rigorous enough. But there are still some overestimations. I know Opeth is an excellent band, and it deserves to be liked by many people. But compared with other bands and other albums, Opeth's fan base here is indeed huge. It is not difficult to see that the average score of the fan base of most albums of most bands must be much higher than the average score of passers-by. When the proportion of the fan base in the total number of scorers is larger, the final average score will definitely be higher. This is an objective fact. Opeth is a rare band where the number of fans who rated is far greater than the number of passers-by who rated, which is different from most of the bands here. After all, the score is just a cold number. It does not know whether it is a score given by fans or non-fans. It will only calculate a result without emotion.

I'd say Insomnium rivals Opeth if we're talking consistent huge ratings.

Written by Claudric on 21.11.2024 at 18:06

it kept the funny-singing/proggy-organ thing going on since Heritage.

Yeah I hate that organ too within the music of Opeth.

I think Mikael is also a fantastic clean singer. So when they anounced they would make an album with no grunt I thought, well you can't go wrong with that. But Joakim thought: hold my beer.

Too prog for my taste. It's like the ADHD classmate of their discography. Not a bad album, but it's so disperse that it's boring. There are almost no memorable passages.

On first listen, this is very much Newpeth with some growls rather than a reversion to the style they had pre-Heritage. I did find myself enjoying the occasional more extreme passages and darker elements, and feel they add positively to the exuberant retro prog vibe that's sustained from previous albums. On the whole, I found it rather enjoyable, and can see it becoming my preferred of their post-Watershed releases; however, it lacks that majestic aura that made classic Opeth so compelling, so I would be surprised if I came to consider it equal to their classic albums, and there also wasn't a song that stood out for pure evocative feels in the way that the best songs from the recent albums (All Things Will Pass, Eternal Rains Shall Come, Faith In Others) have managed either. Still, I hear enough in the album, and particularly the second half, to think that this latter point could possibly change with more exposure.

The biggest thing lacking for me is any kind of memorable riff or hook. When I turn the album off it’s as if it never played, there’s not a single melody to take with you. The solos are good though.

Mikael had mentioned in an interview that this would take multiple listens to fully digest. I think he's correct but initially it sounds like a very strong performance from the band and lives up to the hype.

The ending solo caught my attention too. It immediately reminded me of Epilogue, which I'm more than happy with, it's one of my all time favorites. Good stuff

I think this one would make for a good transition album between Watershed and Heritage, for a smoother transition path, that is. It has to a similar degree that mix between growls and cleans as well as prog and heavier kind of metal, which the former album also had. That being said, I guess I could live entirely without the growls on their latest release. There is not much that sticks with me after the first spin, though I did like A Story Never Told to some extent. Let's see if the album gets repeated spins any time soon. I doubt it tbh.

Good album but not impressed

So far this is as memorable as all the other post Watershed albums... Which is zero. Good musicianship, good vocals, but even the growls don't make this album memorable, and lots of people seem to point out the lack of catchy riffs or just a memorable section... Its appalling how Opeth lost one of their biggest strengths years ago, and they can't seem to get it back.