Opeth

By Request, Part 1 - Orchid:

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Night Prowler said:
Bonus tracks are super interesting: they only played these 3 songs together in 1 show - the one in Plovdiv with the orchestra! They didn't film that show but it's possible they recorded the audio of it, hope we get to hear the whole thing, at least the orchestral part of the show :D
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I was right! Now I don't need to listen to the studio version of Cusp Of Eternity ever again, since this live version is so much better. Hope we get to hear the whole thing.

Didn't listen to the actual album yet though.
 
soundwave said:
For those that have listened to it, where would you rank it against their back catalogue?
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As with every Opeth album, it's a grower that will take multiple listens to have an effect; the three songs released with lyric videos are by far the most accessible tracks here, save perhaps for Era. It's hard for me to compare post-growl Opeth with what the band is known for, but I'd rather listen to this album than any of their first three except Morningrise.

I feel that this album is closer to Heritage and Watershed than Pale Communion in song structure; there's a lot of random breaks where the music dips to levels where you have to crank the volume to hear it -- but as we all know, doing this is a bad idea with Opeth (Note: Opeth is NOT road music.) However, the songs here are better written than most of Heritage, and are on par with Pale Communion (an album which reached into quite experimental soundscapes that this album generally does not.)

I don't know if this is supposed to be a concept album, but it flows extremely well. There are no flat-out weak tracks here; just some "meh" moments that quickly shift into something interesting. Chrysalis is the heaviest track (love the name too), with Strange Brew having some equally crushing moments. There was one line near the beginning of Moon Above, Sun Below from the previous album where Akerfeldt sings very aggressively without growling -- that style is all over this album, and particularly in the two tracks I just mentioned.

But there's obviously some of that melancholy Opeth we all know and love -- Sorceress 2 and Will O the Wisp (I love the Damnation vibe of this one) come to mind. There's an Eastern-sounding almost-instrumental, too, which is somewhat new territory for these guys. I don't know what's going on in A Fleeting Glance -- neoclassical? medieval? -- but I like it. And Era -- which is heavier than anything since Watershed -- boasts a catchy-as-hell outro-chorus that is probably considered the "climax" of the album.

Overall, this is kind of a mix of the Heritage sound (without the unstructured, random songwriting) with the slightly-more-straightforward songwriting of Pale Communion. There are no growls, and unfortunately I don't think there ever will be again. This is not really new territory for the band, except for the heavier moments where Akerfeldt sings aggressively sans-growlies. The album is solid and definitely worth a listen if you're a fan of the band.

Probable songs they'll play live:

-- Sorceress
-- The Wilde Flowers
-- Will O the Wisp
-- Chrysalis
-- Era
 
Sorceress is out!

Another video:

AND the setlist from the first night of the tour:
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Well I'm a bit less disappointed that they're passing over Denver. I'd still love to see them if given the chance, but I can take or leave the set list.

Melinda is indeed the best addition, but the other highlights are songs I've seen live already. I'm a bit curious about The Drapery Falls, according to Setlist.fm they included snippets of other songs. Not sure if that means they rearranged the song or they were fucking around before as they sometimes do. I assume Demon is the original version? That would be cool.

The selection of new songs is disappointing. This has been going on for the last few albums and I really don't get it. Surely the new material isn't so unpopular that Mikael doesn't think they can play more from it. The album is getting great reviews.
 
Without hearing all songs I kind of do understand the selection of these particular three, but not why nothing else is done. I read in the review that these three are the most accessible songs from the album.
 
Thanks for the replies....I finally got around to listening to it and I think it is pretty good. Not exactly Still Life or Black Water Park, but it's solid and better than the last one.
 
Just listened to it. Enjoyable, I don't think it's better than Pale Communion but it's definitely better than Heritage. This could've been a really good metal album though. There were several moments where I felt it was building into something really heavy but of course it didn't go there. The self imposed restriction seems unnecessary, as if Mikael is more interested in making some confused point instead of great music.

That aside, I enjoyed a lot of it. Had a very unified feel and there was a stream of consciousness vibe that is reminsicent of their older albums. Lots of different parts in the songs instead of typical song structures and more contrast between heavy parts and acoustic parts.

Will have to listen to more to see if it grows on me, but on my first listen I'd give it a 6 or 7 and probably only prefer it to their first 3 albums and Heritage. Maybe better than Deliverance.
 
Opeth played a special show at Radio City Music Hall in NYC tonight called "An Evening of Sorcery, Damnation, and Deliverance." Set list below...

Sorceress
Ghost of Perdition
Demon of the Fall
The Wilde Flowers
Face of Melinda
Will O the Wisp
The Drapery Falls
The Devil's Orchard
Hex Omega

Windowpane
Death Whispered a Lullaby
In My Time of Need
Closure
Master's Apprentices
By the Pain I See in Others (never played before)
Deliverance

I am incredibly jealous. Why can't they do this in Chicago?
 
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Full? Or: The making of guitar solo and keyboard (sound)s in Sorceress. :)

I don't have/use Spotify. Surely sounds interesting! When was that early days stuff made?
 
Forostar said:
Full? Or: The making of guitar solo and keyboard (sound)s in Sorceress. :)

I don't have/use Spotify. Surely sounds interesting! When was that early days stuff made?
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Yeah, it could use more insight into other aspects.

It was just recorded! Mikael talks about Sorceress and prepping for the tour. It's really interesting, and long. Basically 2 hours of Mikael going incredibly in-depth about the literal and emotional journey of Opeth behind-the-scenes.
 
Most interesting bits so far:

- Mikael and the band were broke and sleeping on the floors of recording studios or their mom's basements until after Blackwater Park.
- Mikael was violently ill during the vocal recordings of MAYH.
- Mikael absolutely despises Deliverance and says that the recordings for that double album was the worst time of his life. Andy Sneap saved Deliverance while mixing, because the performances and recording quality were "horrible shit". Damnation, however, rejuvenated his spirits.
- Ghost Reveries was also a terrible recording process because the band was falling apart, but Mikael was incredibly happy with the results and completely considers it their best album up til that point.
 
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