Nice. Damnation is higher for me though and My Arms, Your Hearse is better than Orchid >:)

Written by Evil Chip on 02.12.2012 at 20:54

Nice. Damnation is higher for me though and My Arms, Your Hearse is better than Orchid >:)

Well, I explained why Damnation is so low... I'd prefer an Opeth album with more variety and while Damnation is a record of great quality, there's little variety to be found. And I overall feel Orchid is a much more impressive record than My Arms, Your Hearse, the only downside of Orchid being that its production is relatively bad, but the long epic songs just make me like it more than MAYH.

Nice list. It's not how I'd order it, but it's definitely a fair list.

Come to think of it, I'm not sure how I'd order it, because I have a hard time deciding whether my favorite album is Blackwater Park, Ghost Reveries, or Watershed. After that, Still Life, MAYH, and Morningrise are all tied for second place. Next, Deliverance, Damnation, and Orchid would be tied, as well. Heritage would be on the bottom of my list, were I to make one, but it was genuinely enjoyable; I still really like that album.

So yeah. I dare not make a list like this because I don't know what I'd do with it. Still a good list, though.

Written by Jaeryd on 08.01.2013 at 20:33

Nice list. It's not how I'd order it, but it's definitely a fair list.

Come to think of it, I'm not sure how I'd order it, because I have a hard time deciding whether my favorite album is Blackwater Park, Ghost Reveries, or Watershed. After that, Still Life, MAYH, and Morningrise are all tied for second place. Next, Deliverance, Damnation, and Orchid would be tied, as well. Heritage would be on the bottom of my list, were I to make one, but it was genuinely enjoyable; I still really like that album.

So yeah. I dare not make a list like this because I don't know what I'd do with it. Still a good list, though.

Thanks! These lists are always tricky, because everyone would order albums differently.

Well, my absolute favourites will always remain Blackwater Park and Morningrise, because I like all the songs on those albums pretty much equally. All the other albums have at least 1 song that I like less than the others. I see your ranking is different from mine, with the biggest difference being Watershed (I think there are a few great songs on that album, like The Lotus Eater, Heir Apparant and Hessian Peel, but I like a few a lot less, like Coil and Porcelain Heart). And because Orchid features such long epic tracks I think it's better than the average Opeth album. And yeah, Heritage is definitely at the bottom. I did enjoy it, but it's incredibly underwhelming for an Opeth record in my opinion. Mikael can do much, much better than that... at least I hope so.

Written by Erik M. on 08.01.2013 at 20:47

Post

I actually really like Coil. To me, you can't really separate Heir Apparent and Coil. While they are two completely different songs, one just kinda leads into the other. The album starts off with a sad feeling of peaceful resignation, and then crashes into an overwhelming wall of despair and destruction, and it's fucking awesome. The Lotus Eater is a little all over the place, but that's what makes it great. Burden is a song I really enjoyed, and while Porcelain Heart isn't the most amazing, it's one of the more consistent tracks, which I feel I can compare to previous Opeth songs like Funeral Portrait and The Grand Conjuration. It's slightly repetitive, perhaps, but still pretty damn good. Hessian Peel is, of course, magnificent, and then the album has a big finish with Hex Omega, which, to me, sounds like being in the peaceful eye of a tornado while everything around is ripped to shreds.

To be honest, Watershed didn't sound that great to me either, at first. But it grew on me. If I were to rate it the first few times I had heard it, I might have given it an 8. My opinion of it grew much better the more I listened to it and was able to understand the ebb and flow of the whole album.

Well a bit different from yours


1. Still Life

2. Orchid

3. Watershed

4. Deliverance

5. Ghost Reveries

6.My Arms, Your Hearse

7. Blackwater Park

8. Morningrise

9. Damnation

10. Heritage

Written by Guest on 02.03.2013 at 17:33

Well a bit different from yours


1. Still Life

2. Orchid

3. Watershed

4. Deliverance

5. Ghost Reveries

6.My Arms, Your Hearse

7. Blackwater Park

8. Morningrise

9. Damnation

10. Heritage

Wow, it's indeed very different from mine!

I would somewhat agree with Still Life (#3 in my ranking) since it's definitely one of their best and I agree with Heritage and Damnation being the worst albums, of course! But Blackwater Park and Morningrise are definitely the best for me, while that's not the case for you I see. Weird you like Orchid so much... I always thought Morningrise was a big improvement upon Orchid in pretty much every way. Though Orchid is the most epic album they ever made, so it's rather unique... production is pretty bad though.

They're all great, I'd have to say mine is:

1) Ghost Reveries
2) Still Life
3) Blackwater Park
4) Watershed
5) My Arms. Your Hearse
6) Deliverance
7) Morningrise
8) Orchid
9) Damnation
10) Heritage

Mine would be
1) Still Life
2) Damnation
3) My Arms, Your Hearse
4) Ghost Reveries
5) Blackwater Park
6) Heritage
7) Morningrise
8) Watershed
9) Orchid
10) Deliverance

Written by wes93 on 04.03.2013 at 06:57

They're all great, I'd have to say mine is:

1) Ghost Reveries
2) Still Life
3) Blackwater Park
4) Watershed
5) My Arms. Your Hearse
6) Deliverance
7) Morningrise
8) Orchid
9) Damnation
10) Heritage

Why is Watershed so great for most people, I don't really get it. Anyway, glad to see your top #3 is similar to mine (somewhat) and you also have Damnation and Heritage at the bottom, where they should be (even though Damnation is great, but just too mellow to stand against the others)!

Written by R'Vannith on 04.03.2013 at 16:34

Mine would be
1) Still Life
2) Damnation
3) My Arms, Your Hearse
4) Ghost Reveries
5) Blackwater Park
6) Heritage
7) Morningrise
8) Watershed
9) Orchid
10) Deliverance

It seems Still Life is even more popular than Blackwater Park! And while you're entitled to your opinion, I definitely disagree with your ranking!

But the thing about Opeth's albums is that pretty much every album is amazing, so most rankings are legit. That being said, I don't see how Heritage could beat Morningrise and those others, but it's opinions as always.

Written by Erik M. on 04.03.2013 at 22:26


It seems Still Life is even more popular than Blackwater Park!

Rightly so if you ask me.

I've got a soft spot for Heritage I must admit, Opeth's own take on that old sound which often reminds me of early Deep Purple and classic prog in general. Just tailored to my tastes I guess. Personally I can see the problem people have with it, and I'd admit that the songwriting isn't quite up to their usual standard and doesn't have the same staying power perhaps, but its just my cup of tea. Cool, in a word.

Quote:
Why is Watershed so great for most people, I don't really get it. Anyway, glad to see your top #3 is similar to mine (somewhat) and you also have Damnation and Heritage at the bottom, where they should be (even though Damnation is great, but just too mellow to stand against the others)!

Im not entirely sure why I love Watershed so much, and even though Damnation is at the bottom of my list, I still love the album and can listen to it over and over again. Ghost Reveries is, and always probably will be my favorite though. Can't get enough of Ghost of Perdition.

Written by wes93 on 07.03.2013 at 06:53

Im not entirely sure why I love Watershed so much, and even though Damnation is at the bottom of my list, I still love the album and can listen to it over and over again. Ghost Reveries is, and always probably will be my favorite though. Can't get enough of Ghost of Perdition.

Thanks for the +1. Most songs on Watershed are great, but I dislike a few (Coil and Porcelain Heart, but I don't think Burden is that great either), hence why I don't think the album is very strong. Ghost Reveries was my first album (I know them since a few months they released that album) and it was my favourite for a long time, even after I heard everything else by them. Though now my opinion changed a bit as you can see in my list. To be honest, the first 4 albums on my list are all very close to eachother in terms of quality. As I explained, Orchid definitely suffers from bad production, but it's forgivable because I love the long and epic songs so much.

Quote:
Thanks for the +1. Most songs on Watershed are great, but I dislike a few (Coil and Porcelain Heart, but I don't think Burden is that great either), hence why I don't think the album is very strong. Ghost Reveries was my first album (I know them since a few months they released that album) and it was my favourite for a long time, even after I heard everything else by them. Though now my opinion changed a bit as you can see in my list. To be honest, the first 4 albums on my list are all very close to eachother in terms of quality. As I explained, Orchid definitely suffers from bad production, but it's forgivable because I love the long and epic songs so much.

Well Coil is one of my favorite songs on the album, I just love the calm flow of the song and the female singer. But yeah Ghost Reveries was my first album too, so that is probably a reason I love it so much. My favorite album might change eventually, I just think every song on Ghost Reveries is some of their best. I'll have to re-listen to their whole discography and see if my opinion changes.

Written by Erik M. on 02.03.2013 at 18:03

Written by Guest on 02.03.2013 at 17:33

Well a bit different from yours

Wow, it's indeed very different from mine!
Weird you like Orchid so much... I always thought Morningrise was a big improvement upon Orchid in pretty much every way. Though Orchid is the most epic album they ever made, so it's rather unique... production is pretty bad though.

why weird ? it's a special album with special feelings in it ,and of course the songwriting in this album is very original if you ask me,I don't know why everyone look down on this one

Written by Guest on 07.03.2013 at 23:00

why weird ? it's a special album with special feelings in it ,and of course the songwriting in this album is very original if you ask me,I don't know why everyone look down on this one

You're right. I think most people think the production is bad (and they're NOT wrong ) as well as the songs being so long they begin to drag a bit, which I definitely don't agree with. On the other hand, the bad production kind of suites this album... I mean, I can't imagine Orchid with a perfect clean production (like Blackwater Park has for example).

My first Opeth album was 2002 Deliverance, yet only makes it at #4. Heritage is so far the worst that it almost fell off my message post.

1. Still Life
2. Blackwater Park
.
.
.
.
3. My Arms, Your Hearse
4. Deliverance
5. Ghost Reveries
6. Orchid
7. Damnation
8. Morningrise
.
.
9. Watershed
.
.
.



10. Heritage

Written by Benjamin on 07.04.2013 at 14:06

My first Opeth album was 2002 Deliverance, yet only makes it at #4. Heritage is so far the worst that it almost fell off my message post.

1. Still Life
2. Blackwater Park
.
.
.
.
3. My Arms, Your Hearse
4. Deliverance
5. Ghost Reveries
6. Orchid
7. Damnation
8. Morningrise
.
.
9. Watershed
.
.
.



10. Heritage

Yep, I agree Heritage is by far their worst. Your ranking is a bit similar to mine, but somehow you like Morningrise (which consists of 5 long brilliant tracks) way less than I do and My Arms, Your Hearse a lot more than me. That being said, the lower ranked albums (Damnation, Watershed and Heritage) are my lower ranked albums as well. A lot of people have posted their rankings here, but I can understand yours pretty well (except for where you put Morningrise of course).

I think you've ordered this list very fairly, though personally mine will be slightly different like most others. 'To Bid You Farewell' is my personal favourite on Morningrise and Orchid the least favourite of the bunch (next to Heritage). The rest I agree with.

Written by CyberSymphony on 15.04.2013 at 22:51

I think you've ordered this list very fairly, though personally mine will be slightly different like most others. 'To Bid You Farewell' is my personal favourite on Morningrise and Orchid the least favourite of the bunch (next to Heritage). The rest I agree with.

Thanks. It seems most people have a problem with Orchid being so high on this list, but I even thought about putting it higher than it is now. The fact remains that the production sucks, but as I explained, I enjoy Orchid so much due to the extremely epic long songs. I also like to give Mikael credit for being only 16 (or even 15) at the time of Orchid. It's insane to think you're listening to a kid singing, since his voice didn't change that much. As for Morningrise, what can I say? It's the only album on this list with three random favourite tracks, because I think they're all equally brilliant, but I had to choose nonetheless.

And for the record, Still Life would be #1 if it wasn't for "those two" songs. I wonder if you can guess which two songs I'm referring to.

Written by Erik M. on 15.04.2013 at 23:01

I also like to give Mikael credit for being only 16 (or even 15) at the time of Orchid. It's insane to think you're listening to a kid singing, since his voice didn't change that much.

He was 21....

Also I have to admit that I find the list heavily influenced by your appreciation for extreme metal, not really for the musicianship in the releases. Then again...lists are subjective so I'll shut up

Written by LeKiwi on 03.05.2013 at 04:12

He was 21....

Also I have to admit that I find the list heavily influenced by your appreciation for extreme metal, not really for the musicianship in the releases. Then again...lists are subjective so I'll shut up

Well, that's awkward... somehow I've thought for many years he was so young. I can remember reading it somewhere, but I can't talk myself out of this one.

And yes, I tend to like the longer, more epic songs (overall, not just Opeth). Why? Because those have more variety most of the time and I like variety. As I said, Damnation is great and all, but it doesn't come close to the others for me. Heritage is obvious since I don't like progressive rock at all and it's just an extremely underwhelming release in comparison to their other albums, whether you like Heritage or not.

Anyway, why don't you give your own ranking of Opeth's albums? You obviously disagree with me, so now I'm curious what your ranking looks like.

Written by Erik M. on 03.05.2013 at 21:34

Anyway, why don't you give your own ranking of Opeth's albums? You obviously disagree with me, so now I'm curious what your ranking looks like.

Not going to bother rating the albums...in fact I'm not even sure if this is how I would rank them (barring a few obvious ones) I would prefer to rank them in clusters (1-3 perfection, 4-7 excellent, 8 good, 9-10....no comment)

1. Watershed - no (subjective) flaws over here
2. Blackwater Park - each song is incredible however some of the riffs were of excessive duration (prime example - the whole of Dirge for November or the acoustic riff from 2:40-5:15)
3. Ghost Reveries - 5 phenomenal tracks, 3 average (acoustic) ones
4. Deliverance - enjoyed each track however took me some time to get used to the aggressiveness found in the album
5. Damnation - love it, however lacks the appraised variations from distortion to clean (both vocal and instrumental)...I love prog death
6. Still Life - the verge of fruition for Mikael's talent - an improvement from the traits lacking in #8...I still found a few of the heavier passages a bit unrefined and some of the melodies forced and unenticing...
7. Heritage - excellent album although some of the passages do not flow (e.g. Famine at 2:45 or Nepenthe at 2:30) and I don't like a few melodies here and there
8. My Arms, Your Hearse - evident improvement from Morningrise, but some distorted passages lack melody (or Opethian groove for that matter) and some melodies are awkward
9. Morningrise - acoustic tracks were enjoyable, but those feeble attempts at distorted riffs were simply too amateur
10. Orchid - see #9

Note of the latter 2 albums, only one tracks remains on my computer, To Bid You Farewell

I should probably note that I'm not fond of particular melodies - especially those employing major scales/chords which is probably why I ranked the albums as such.

They all suck imo.

I've never really been arsed to check out anything but their first two, BWP and heritage. But I disliked all of it so...

Great list! Its nice seeing how everyone has their own opinion

Written by Opethian on 17.06.2013 at 00:12

Great list! Its nice seeing how everyone has their own opinion

Thanks!

Out of curiosity, how would you rank them?

Written by Erik M. on 17.06.2013 at 00:18

Written by Opethian on 17.06.2013 at 00:12

Great list! Its nice seeing how everyone has their own opinion

Thanks!

Out of curiosity, how would you rank them?

hmmm,

1. Blackwater Park
2. Still Life
3. Deliverance
4. My Arms, Your Hearse
5. Orchid
6. Ghosst Reveries
7. Watershed
8. Damnation
9. Heritage
10. Morningrise

something like that Seriously tho, i enjoy them all and i dont stress about which one i like or dislike over the other

Written by Erik M. on 17.06.2013 at 00:18

Written by Opethian on 17.06.2013 at 00:12

Great list! Its nice seeing how everyone has their own opinion

Thanks!

Out of curiosity, how would you rank them?

hmmm,

1. Blackwater Park
2. Still Life
3. Deliverance
4. My Arms, Your Hearse
5. Orchid
6. Ghost Reveries
7. Watershed
8. Damnation
9. Heritage
10. Morningrise

something like that Seriously tho, i enjoy them all and i dont stress about which one i like or dislike over the other

Written by Opethian on 17.06.2013 at 00:27

hmmm,

1. Blackwater Park
2. Still Life
3. Deliverance
4. My Arms, Your Hearse
5. Orchid
6. Ghost Reveries
7. Watershed
8. Damnation
9. Heritage
10. Morningrise

something like that Seriously tho, i enjoy them all and i dont stress about which one i like or dislike over the other

Interesting to see you have Morningrise at #10 (inferior to Heritage, really?). Cannot understand that at all, especially since it's very similar to Orchid in many ways, but then even better (in my opinion). Aside from that, definitely a good ranking. I might've said this before here (too lazy to check ), but if it weren't for Face of Melinda and Benighted then Still Life would've been #2 easily and maybe even #1, but that's of course hypothetically speaking. On Blackwater Park everything is basically perfect for me, there's not a single song I don't like. Same goes for Morningrise, however the production isn't as good as Blackwater Park's production.