THE OPETH REFERENDUM MMXXI: Results -> Blackwater Park wins again!

JudasMyGuide said:
There's also @KidInTheDark666 @Onhell @Diesel 11 and @MindRuler .

Also, I already tagged him in the original discussion post (and he nonchalantly ignored me :) ), but @Forostar used to be a participant before and I tended to hope for @SixesAlltheway as well (dunno if he's an Opeth fan, but like me at one time he seemed to be the fan of everything :D )
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Sorry... I know it is childish but I feel sort of out of place because I am really fond of old Opeth and feel that (on Maidenfans) this early era is widely regarded as the worst they did. It's a bit painful to see these first two albums do so bad. So I'm not that motivated to go through all that again.
I sort of know what will happen already. Done it 2 or 3 times before. The last album SUCKS big time in my opinion. What an overkill of annoying vocals.
 
Jer said:
Thanks for the thought, but I think my participation in something like this would tend to ruin the experience for the extreme metal fans, and my masochism meter still needs to recharge after the GMAC. I’ll probably check out the growl-free stuff sometime on my own.
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Check out either Pale Communion or Damnation first! I wasn't expecting you to even consider voting in the later rounds, but it's nice to see you thought about it.

Forostar said:
I feel sort of out of place because I am really fond of old Opeth and feel that (on Maidenfans) this early era is widely regarded as the worst they did.
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I currently prefer Orchid to Still Life. I haven't listened to Morningrise or My Arms, Your Hearse yet.
 
Midnight said:
Check out either Pale Communion or Damnation first! I wasn't expecting you to even consider voting in the later rounds, but it's nice to see you thought about it.


I currently prefer Orchid to Still Life. I haven't listened to Morningrise or My Arms, Your Hearse yet.
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Well well....
 
Forostar said:
Sorry... I know it is childish but I feel sort of out of place because I am really fond of old Opeth and feel that (on Maidenfans) this early era is widely regarded as the worst they did. It's a bit painful to see these first two albums do so bad. So I'm not that motivated to go through all that again.
I sort of know what will happen already. Done it 2 or 3 times before. The last album SUCKS big time in my opinion. What an overkill of annoying vocals.
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I think you are over exaggerating a bit tbh, in fact your criticism of the last album seems harsher than anything I’ve seen for the early albums. I would take the first three albums over the last two plus Heritage anyway.
 
I would definitely take Morningrise over Newpeth (apart from Pale Communion which slays), but I still can't get into Orchid. I can say that Orchid doesn't offend me like some Newpeth songs do though.
 
I was hoping I'd address this in my write-up, but...

Yeah, I get why you love Orchid, for me it's way too much a hodge-podge of ideas without any proper system or reason + the constant "unison guitars Irish jig" gets tiring pretty soon when you listen to the whole album. It's uneven is what I'm trying to say, and kinda monotonous, more so than some of their latter albums.

Still, Forest of October and Knife and the Silent Water are really high on my Opeth list. In a way I love every Opeth album. And I am glad that even these albums have their rabid supporters. Just like I'm going to defend Watershed even though it's going to get eliminated pretty quickly.

You see, I participated in Survivors where I knew my beloved albums (Systematic Chaos) would get trampled in the dust. In fact, I love In Cauda Venenum very much and your assessment made me sad. But hey, that's the game.
 
Uh yeah, but seeing the complete early era bite the dust for four times om a row? Nah, I rather skip it. It's predictable.The positions and the arguments stay the same.

Winning from newpeth is not much satisfaction. The first two albums (songs) will end up in the bottom four, or even worse.

Good luck!
 
Voted for Dignity, Universal Truth and Continuum from ICV. Heart In Hand should have votes, really, but these 3 songs are all way worse, and I didn't have enough votes to vote for it too. Also voted for Sorceress, The Wilde Flowers and Chrysalis from Sorceress. Would've also voted for Era if I had enough votes. Will O The Wisp is the only good song left from this album.
 
Forostar said:
Sorry... I know it is childish but I feel sort of out of place because I am really fond of old Opeth and feel that (on Maidenfans) this early era is widely regarded as the worst they did. It's a bit painful to see these first two albums do so bad. So I'm not that motivated to go through all that again.
I sort of know what will happen already. Done it 2 or 3 times before. The last album SUCKS big time in my opinion. What an overkill of annoying vocals.
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I don’t think there’s too many people who prefer Opeth’s last four albums to their first eight. I’ll take Pale Communion over Watershed, but that’s it. I loved their early sound and wish they would have continued it. Nothing against MAYH, but I definitely prefer their first two albums. Their “middle” era (Still Life through Ghost Reveries) is still what I consider to be their strongest, but I’m not a huge fan of this current growl-free era. Damnation was excellent, but that was a break - not a permanent style change.

I think what I miss most on their first two albums is the bass playing style. I love Martin Mendez, but the six-string fretless leads of Orchid and Morningrise were really up my alley. I thought it was proggy and unique.
 
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Eliminated after Round 3:
Dignity - 6 votes
Charlatan - 6 votes
Strange Brew - 6 votes
Universal Truth - 5 votes

Pale Communion joins the game!
 
- can't make up my mind on the ICV songs, I like them all.
- Chrysalis + Era
- Elysian Woes (weakest on the album and one of my least favorite Opeth ballads ever)
- Goblin (fine, but filler)

Pale Communion is the only great record of the NüPeth era (and yes I'm including Watershed). It is the perfect combination of classic Opethian atmosphere and Mikael's retro prog obsession. Further more, regardless of the growling or lack thereof, what makes this album so good is that the songs feel like songs. I actually think ICV sits in a similar, cohesive range, but I find the material on PC infinitely catchier and livelier. It just feels alive.

Mikael's voice (and harmonies) are just on point throughout the entire record. Unfortunately the middle is the weakest spot (which is pretty unusual for Opeth), but the 6 songs that bracket that middle are just fantastic. I shall sit here and defend River to my death: best song on the album and features the single heaviest, and most beautiful, music on the whole album.
 
Pale Communion is the only Newpeth album that manages to evoke the atmosphere of the earlier stuff, that is, the melancholy of it. Heritage is too drowned out in the retro proggyness and latter two albums have way too many rock-ish happy moments.
 
I like Continuum a fair amount less than Lovelorn Crime, so its my only vote from ICV.

As for Sorceress, with Strange Brew out (wtf?!?), I guess I'm routing for the title track along with Chrysalis and Era... But I'm still voting for it, because I'll be really really really bummed if Chrysalis doesn't make it.

Now, as for PC, I've tried to listen to it a bunch over the last week:

Eternal Rains Will Come - the drums steal the show for me, and actually I think it could work better as an instrumental. Overall though, not quite my cup of tea, and I've heard it a good amount more than the rest of the tracks so I confidently give it a vote.

Cusp of Eternity - the single, and fittingly very straightforward. Not too much to say about this one except that I really like Mikael's singing here.

Moon Above, Sun Below - in a complete 180 from the previous track, one of the most progressive Opeth songs! Wow, this has like 10 parts or something. Highlight? The solo, but more broadly, the entire middle section, including everything from that spastic verse ("In a river of grief I am drowning") through the aforementioned solo and the calm verse and ending with a fake outro! Of course, everything before and after is awesome as well. Super cool song.

Elysian Woes - never been a big fan of Opeth ballads, and this one is no different. The funny keyboard at 3:17 is cool, but this is an easy vote for a mostly forgettable song.

Goblin - not bad, nothing offensive, quite enjoyable, but this screams interlude, so it gets the axe.

River - I feel similar to this one as to Continuum, it's just not quite there. However it's much easier to articulate what I don't like about the song: The first 3 minutes. Fucking kumzitz Opeth. The other thing that helps me hinge to the identity of the song is the structure; it goes from the fun campfire song to a more progressive vibe and in the last minutes enters heavy realms, flows like a river. Which I think is super awesome and easily my favourite thing about this one. The heavy part is the heaviest this albums gets, I can hear the riff at 6:10 fit in a Blackwater Park song. It's so weird, I truly dislike the first half, but this entire concept wouldn't be possible without it. If only it was better, it could be in my top 3. And maybe it will grow on me, but for now... Vote.

Voice of Treason - speaking of growers, this was my least favourite song at first. By a margin. But now, I really like it! It has a very cinematic vibe throughout, with the strings and all that. The chorus is huge, and the classical guitar runs are just chef's kiss. What's great here is that it isn't very extravagant, which helps the scenery a lot, and is actually what I dislike about Eternal Rains. Can't forget the bridge at 6 minutes in, which is even greater than the chorus. It's a tad long, but very good.

Faith in Others - ah yes, the dreamy closer. Kind of an antithesis to All Things Will Pass, whereas that one is doomy cold, Faith in Others is very warm and inviting. Hard to write about, because that's just the type of song it is, it carries you away. I like the groove of the bass and drums, and it shifts just enough to not be too repetitive. I particularly like when the distorted guitar enters with that dissonant chord at 5:20. Makes me think of Atonement, which I'm a big fan of.


So overall, this album was a lot harder to get into than ICV, which was an instant hit with me, and I definitely like it more with each listen. It's maybe also more proggy than ICV, but also more hit and miss. Moon Above is easily the best song on the album. I give the album a Sorrow/10.
 
Night Prowler said:
Pale Communion is the only Newpeth album that manages to evoke the atmosphere of the earlier stuff, that is, the melancholy of it. Heritage is too drowned out in the retro proggyness and latter two albums have way too many rock-ish happy moments.
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Also, sorry, but ICV is even more melancholic and autumnal and bathing in decay than PC. I know you don't like it, but that doesn't change the fact :p
 
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