Written by Bad English on 23.11.2024 at 15:11

Just listen to this first N last time. I even don't listen to old albums. Only how I do listen
Opeth now is new albums once and then burry them forever. Still Life and maybe Blackwater Park are last album from band i can listen to.
This had small funeral vibes, here, one song had growls, but band even did failure to make good funeral music.

I am happy Anathema went on hiatus, it's same story, fw bands really needs split up or change name. That band died after Serenades.

Why are you so mean-spirited here BE?!
Bands and artists can do whatever they want. You don't like what they do, move on, go listen to something else, why wish them harm?! wtf?!

Written by Bad English on 23.11.2024 at 15:11

I am happy Anathema went on hiatus, it's same story, fw bands really needs split up or change name. That band died after Serenades.

“I don’t like x band so they should split up” is one of your most frequent and most dumbass takes. Consider the concept of different tastes.

Written by Vellichor on 23.11.2024 at 15:22

Written by Bad English on 23.11.2024 at 15:11

I am happy Anathema went on hiatus, it's same story, fw bands really needs split up or change name. That band died after Serenades.

“I don’t like x band so they should split up” is one of your most frequent and most dumbass takes. Consider the concept of different tastes.

I wrote somewhere in my reviews that people have hard time adapting to evolution of a band between albums.

Because Bad English is greatest Metalhead.

The only track I find myself revisiting is the opening. While I’m glad the growls are back, the rest didn’t resonate with me musically enough.

Enjoying the album from what I've heard so far. Better then what they've been releasing. But why do most of his clean vocals have to be weird? Just sing normal dude!

Written by Claudric on 23.11.2024 at 11:42

Written by X-FrEaK on 22.11.2024 at 15:01

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.

Have you considered that the responsible for your incapacity of catching anything memorable out of those five well-appreciated albums could be none other than yourself ? At least it seems to be a better explanation than just : "they lost it lol".

Hum given the average scores and opinions of said albums, no I don't think it's a me thing, you just have to look at metalstorm ratings to see I'm not the only one with this opinion. They're not 'well appreciated', by Opeth standards (as in a band that constantly delivered 8/9 rated albums), it's okay-ish appreciated. This is a fact, not an opinion (except this one which seems to be higher rated so far)

Written by nikarg on 23.11.2024 at 11:45

I find the old classics very disjointed, as if parts are being sewn together without the whole being cohesive. Clearly, most people think otherwise. But this album is different, to my ears, at least, and I think that it has very nice flow.

Funny, I'd say this album feels much more disjointed than their classics, which flow incredibly well to my ears (especially everything after Morningrise and before Ghost Reveries). Glad you finally found an Opeth album that you like though!

Not a memorable album, not a single song stands out (§6 and story never told are ok). Lot´s of groove and atmosphere but no real depth to the music. I think from the post-watershed era this is their weakest work. Well, at least the growls are back. Maybe they´ll get it next time.

I dig it, it's a grower that's for sure

I've had some time with the album now so that i'm more comfortable trying to talk about it. Maybe starting with the negatives wouldn't be that bad so here it goes. The thing about it lacking in the memorable melodies department is a valid point, also that the "metal" riffs are a lot less complex from what we're used to from Opeth. Both things set the album back a little. That being said, it is really exciting seeing Mikael dipping his toes in the more narrative driven side of prog music, where the story is really intertwined with the way the music is written, to the point that you can't take one without the other. That's a risk they took that i find really admirable. Once i started listening to it with this thought in mind, i found myself enjoying it a LOT. It didn't feel as disjointed as it did upon the first listen and i keep coming back to it not only because i'm a huge fan (and secretly want to love the album) but also because i find it intriguing and sort of addicitve in its varity and different moods.

As to where it stands for me amongst the rest of the discography, i'd say the bottom half (above Sorceress, ICV and Orchid).

Written by MH_WarWizard on 24.11.2024 at 05:26

Enjoying the album from what I've heard so far. Better then what they've been releasing. But why do most of his clean vocals have to be weird? Just sing normal dude!

I know plenty of people, who call growls weird. Just saying

This album is interesting and a grower. Give it a try. I like the growls and death influences back with rhe heavy groovy prog. 7.4/10

Written by Zap on 24.11.2024 at 14:58

Funny, I'd say this album feels much more disjointed than their classics, which flow incredibly well to my ears (especially everything after Morningrise and before Ghost Reveries). Glad you finally found an Opeth album that you like though!

I think what InnerSelf said, applies to me too, and it is certainly one of the reasons why I find this to be engaging:

Written by InnerSelf on 25.11.2024 at 14:32

it is really exciting seeing Mikael dipping his toes in the more narrative driven side of prog music, where the story is really intertwined with the way the music is written, to the point that you can't take one without the other.

Written by nikarg on 26.11.2024 at 08:04

I think what InnerSelf said, applies to me too, and it is certainly one of the reasons why I find this to be engaging:

Written by InnerSelf on 25.11.2024 at 14:32

it is really exciting seeing Mikael dipping his toes in the more narrative driven side of prog music, where the story is really intertwined with the way the music is written, to the point that you can't take one without the other.

That I definitely agree with, and from the first listen I could tell I needed to sit down and listen to it accompanied by the booklet.

Written by Daniell on 25.11.2024 at 17:45

Written by MH_WarWizard on 24.11.2024 at 05:26

Enjoying the album from what I've heard so far. Better then what they've been releasing. But why do most of his clean vocals have to be weird? Just sing normal dude!

I know plenty of people, who call growls weird. Just saying

That doesn't change the fact given the standard for normal clean vocals( ntm the standard of his cleans on old albums), he does some weird stuff here and there.

I think a lot depends on what your favourite album of theirs is before now, and there's so much variety in the back catalogue that it can lead to a very different impression of this one.

If it's Still Life (as mine is) then this record probably has too much prog, not enough death and the songs can feel a bit like a patchwork of different parts rather than a coherent whole. Fans like me were hoping for a return to a progressive death sound, and whilst that's certainly present here, it's more in patches rather than the overall genre. It's more "prog with some death" than "death with some prog", as those earlier albums are.

It your favourite is Ghost Reveries or later, then you'll probably think the complex song structures are interesting, the lyrics and storytelling take you on a journey, and there are still the death elements in there to keep the whole thing varied, which sets it apart from the post-Watershed albums. Those are two quite different interpretations of the same thing, and there will be plenty of others as well according to your tastes.

One thing I think we'd all agree on is the really high standard of musicianship on display though. That means for me it's a 7/10, but I can certainly see how others would rate it higher if they prefer a different part of the back catalogue to me.

After only listening to the album 3 times, I can't say I'm very fond of it, aside from the first 2 tracks and the last track which are great. Track #3 suffers from a weak ending. After that, it seems like the Heritage-style makes a return, with that weird jazzy instrument that I came to hate.

I certainly hope my opinion will change, but this is in no way a return to the early Opeth style (pre-Heritage), as nearly nothing sounds similar to those old(er) albums. Also, no long songs is a real bummer. The last really long song (10+ minutes) we had was on Pale Communion, which was released 10 years ago.

All in all, it seems like an interesting album due to the concept and how there's an actual story being told, but musically it doesn't really grip me, so far...

Growls sound great, everything else is bland. Not the same vibe as their older work. It's not bad it's just not the quality you expect from Opeth.

It´s definitely a mix between the old version of Opeth and the most recent one, but with less or sometimes almost non existent melodies and acoustic parts. The growls are back with balance, the heaviness is back aswell, some of the songs are really good, particularly the songs of the second half, which I think is the strongest of the record. Its a record that grows on you with a few spins, but is not a memorable one. Essentially is a very good return to a side of the band that we haven´t seen in a while, but far from being a masterpiece.

Is it better or at least as good as the first 9 records of the band? No, not at all. At least for me.

I was never a fan even though I like prog, but I always give their albums a chance.
But this was an absolute chore to get through, most passages don't make any sense, as soon as the song builds some momentum it immediately shoots itself in the foot.

So far, I like it quite a lot. This is their most eccentric record, imo. I like this direction, but it could be better. Like consolidating some sections and expanding on the stronger motifs. Lots of noodly stuff that, while fun to groove to, doesn't easily stick around in the ol' auditory cortex.

Nothing moved me as much as it moved some folks here because this new prop dropped from Opeth is vastly inferior from the earlier albums, if you (without being overtly perky and vivacious) would be proactively listening. This isn't a step of evolution for the Opeth.

I agree with Zap and many others here, it's severely disjointed and doesn't stand to stand chances with initial offerings that truly defined Opeth.

So I've come to a decision about this album. I personally feel it's a step in the right direction, but it is still a little lacking while also being better then the stuff they've released since watershed. My biggest problem with the album has to do with the fact that most of the songs are surprisingly short and the music shifts tones and melodies too often and fails to given them enough time to breath.

There's even one part where it shifts and its not long after before it moves on to a different melody in what feels like a passing glance. It wants to be progressive but moves from idea to idea far to quickly which imo is why it has a disjointed feeling.

I have enjoyed the album more on further spins then I originally did, but its still a solid 8 for me, which normally is fine, but for a band as treasured as Opeth, I expect more. This does give me hope for the future though.

I think that many listeners were misled into thinking that this album has old Opeth vibes. Misled by growls. Because if you disregard growls, this is a new era Opeth with PERHAPS slightly darker overtones. Much of which, in my opinion, we owe to Ian Anderson's voice. Because the music is most of all reminiscent of Heritage and some parts of Sorceress. I have no idea how people hear pre-Watershed Opeth here.

Written by Daniell on 28.11.2024 at 11:52

I think that many listeners were misled into thinking that this album has old Opeth vibes. Misled by growls. Because if you disregard growls, this is a new era Opeth with PERHAPS slightly darker overtones. Much of which, in my opinion, we owe to Ian Anderson's voice. Because the music is most of all reminiscent of Heritage and some parts of Sorceress. I have no idea how people hear pre-Watershed Opeth here.

You're probably the first person to name Heritage as a point of reference and I couldn't agree more. Opeth played it really smart with the promotion of this album and I have a feeling that Mikael had to swallow his pride a bit letting it get promoted this way.

On another note, Paragraph 4 is a certified banger.

Nice, another "Steven Wilson Jazz Fusion with some extra gain" album.

After a few spins, I still consider Opeth dead to me. This Opeth 2.0, after "Watershed" at least, is not my cup of tea. I don't really get why well-established bands with a very successful trademark sound choose to make such big a change and still use their "big name" tag. Just call it quits, change name and start anew. But yeah, probably money. What made them unique for me was the perfectly balanced mix of Death Metal with prog-jazz-70's vibes. They aged like milk, at least for me.

It's a good progressive album for what it is, very well executed and high quality bla bla bla but yeah...meh. That's not what my ears expect when they see "Opeth", even after a decade of this stuff.

A few listens in, yes, I'll absolutely agree with Åkerfeldt's assesment of this as a "restless" album. There are echoes of earlier albums in the motifs that the band are playing, but they are combined in a way that owes much more to their most recent albums, and they do not linger over any particular motif for long.

There is a compositional logic to the music, but it is driven by the story, not by the slow development of musical ideas. May be a bit of Åkerfeldt's soundtrack work rubbing off on the process.

I'm not in love with the story, but then there are very few concept albums that I am fully satisfied with on that level. (I feel the same way about Operation Mindcrime.) One of the side effects of having an advanced degree in literature. But I don't think there is anything wrong with the story, it's just the sort of story that a person more engaged with music than with literature would produce.

Still not ready to settle on a rating, though.

Written by Bad English on 23.11.2024 at 15:11

Just listen to this first N last time. I even don't listen to old albums. Only how I do listen
Opeth now is new albums once and then burry them forever. Still Life and maybe Blackwater Park are last album from band i can listen to.
This had small funeral vibes, here, one song had growls, but band even did failure to make good funeral music.

I am happy Anathema went on hiatus, it's same story, fw bands really needs split up or change name. That band died after Serenades.

Multiple songs on this album have growls, not just one song. It's not their intention to make "funeral music". Where did you get that idea?

Anathema's best album to me is still The Silent Enigma, which is definitely better than Serenades. And the albums after those are also praised (although I never got into those).

Only in extreme cases, like with Tristania, I think a band should change their name. Certainly not when the most important members (who write the music/vocalists) are still part of the band, like in Opeth's case. Any band can make the music they want to make.

It's interesting that, even though §2 starts strong and with even more punch than §1, it just doesn't feel heavy enough to be sincere. It feels like trickery of sorts.
And I suspect that the reason might be the guitar sound. Like, if you compare guitar sound from Ghost Reveries and this side by side, even the supposedly heavy stuff sounds different. It's like it's filed down. It lacks some of the frequencies, particularly in the higher range. And because it lacks something, suddenly other things become very visible and upfront. Which makes for this overly proggy feeling. Not saying that's all of it, but it's a component to this. I'd imagine if they'd use the same hardware they've used on Ghost Reveries, it would leave a different impression, it would seem like a build up over GR instead of their prog era. Maybe, I'm not sure, need to listen more