Watershed [CD]

If you are new to Opeth about half this review will be lost on you... I do have some words for you however:- Opeth are worth getting into, they are worth the effort of listening to the album a couple of times. They will pay you back 10 fold. This album is in my opinion the most "aquired taste" of their discography so it might be worth getting one of their other albums first. Maybe Blackwater Park or Deliverance but deffinatly GO FOR IT!!!

So to the album. Overall I must say that this is an excellent album. The time taken over every detail is astonishing, the production dripping with new ideas and the songs moving into new places than other albums before. This album is as I said before and aquired taste. Some tracks like heir apparent will deffinatly turn some people off but it is important to give it time. To let your mind wrap around this and break it down so you can fully understand it. Here is a track by track breakdown of the album.

Track 1 Coil: This seems to be a good opening for the album, not diving in at the monsterishly heavy end of Opeth but rather introducing the rich sound scape that is retained through-out the album. I must say that the use of a female vocalist was an inspired decision. Not typical Opeth fair but great stuff.

Track 2 Hier Apparent: A heavy complex array of crushing guitar riffs soft keyboard/acoustic guitar sections. NOT FOR THE FAINT HEARTED! I am still trying to get my ming around the first riff 1:21. I must say i was impressed with the guitar work here, it is obvious that the guys have pushed it a bit further guitar wise. How the drummer keeps the tiem is beyond me. I would say that although good this is more of a viseral assult than anything else, it works in the context of the album but I will not often be listening to it as a stand alone piece. It is better on the album than it was live at Brixton and it was great there.

Track 3 Lotus Eater: This is the piece that you guys will have most likely heard all ready or at least an edited version of it. Starting with what seems to be medival folk music and then strait into a peice that really astounds. There is a great variety here (yes a funk section...) and it all really works. I must say that the soundscaped talking at the end is one of my favourite moments of the ablum. An excellent track that is of real substance.

Track 4 Burden: Here is the most accesible track on the ablum. Great singing, great solos and great song writing. Very easy to listen to. However i do not know how well this will sit with most opeth fans who I do not think are of the "I like my music accesible" varity. This is excellent however and needs attention! A near perfect production of a well written song is always welcome. Listen out for the de-tuning guitar and the laugh at the end... clever Mikael...

Track 5 Porcelain Heart: Another track you have probably heard through youtube or roadrunner records. The most encompassing thing i can say about this track is that I really tried to listen to it with an objective ear and I can't, it is too good; I got too involved. For me this is the standout track of the album. It flows through and carries you with it, one of Mikael's best compositions perhaps helped by Akesson.

Track 6 Hussian Peel: This is a most interesting piece. There is a lot going on, backward vocals, thick string sections and piano playing with a fragile beauty are the norm. This needs a lot of listens as it has abviously been recorded and produced in the most fantastic manner possible. I am particularly fond of the drumming here which is perfect for this track. Also it was nice to see some Easten influances at 08:45. This track is a close second to Porcelain Heart, but who knows how it will sound after more listens!

Track 7 Hex Omega: Starting with a crushing riff it then enters a wonderful flute section at 0:44. The originality of this album is still coming through at this late point of the album! That is what this track is, a great ending with some of the most lavish production of the album. It really drives home the importance of this album as a milestone for Opeth. This is something new, an explorable realm.

Get this album, keep it close, listen to it as much as possible and you will start to explore with Opeth. I hope above everything that this growth continues into next album. I give this album 5 stars because it still needs to grow on me and I am all ready in love with it. It stands tall with other offerings such as Still Life and Blackwater Park which is no mean feat. (sorry for it saying 4 stars I clicked the worng button)

Oh my god...

Like all Opeth albums it takes a few listens to get into, that's the beauty of Opeth's lasting appeal as the music doesn't get old. But this one has some extra tangents that have never been used before. I don't want to spoil them for you but there are some interesting things going on in here.

A lot of the album really goes back to their Deep Purple influences I can here s1974-1975 Purple-esque sounds coming out from every dark beautiful corner of this album. Imagine DPs Child in Time mixed with Emperor mixed with Pink Floyd.

I think it is a daring move using a lot of the things they have done in the album but as a whole album it really works. Opeth fans and well versed music fans alike will not be disappointed by this album it is both sinister and beautiful.

For want of a better term I think the direct of the band is much more Prog than it has ever been. The new line up is great and the only thing that's missing from the record as previous ones is some of Martin Lopez's drumming. Don't get me wrong I love Martin Axenrot but Lopez was a bit more of a tasteful drummer. Axenrot has a tendency to over do things where Lopez would have known less is more.

All in all a great album - Well worth the money and I'm not saying this from a `fan boy' perspective this is from a music lover!

For `open minded' fans of - Deep Purple, Emperor, Pink Floyd, Mostly Autumn, Camel, Therion, Porcupine Tree and Katatonia.

A couple of years ago, I purchased the album 'Still Life' as I was curious to see what Opeth were like after hearing positive comments about them. Being a fan of metal and prog rock, I thought there was a good chance I could get into them. However I was not blown away by it, and only really listened to the opening track 'The Moor' which is a great song. I only listened to the album a few times, and thought it was average at best.

After listening to their latest effort, my view of Opeth completely changed! This album really gripped my attention on the first listen, and ended up listening to it regularly, liking it more every time. This album focuses much more on the prog rock element; 'Hessian Peel' is an outstanding piece of prog rock with bluesy elements, which has a sound derived from the 70s. From the opening track you can tell this is going to be something different from Opeth, with its pastoral introduction of "Coil" (even has a female vocalist!). The next two tracks feature their very heavy, death growling vocals, but they also combine interesting experimental prog rock elements, really taking the listener on a ride with plenty of depth for repeated listens.

Personally my favourite song has to be 'Burden'. This song is just beautiful; it was while hearing this for the first time which demonstrated what a talent band Opeth are. Instantly likable, but still gets better with every listen. Its short piano introduction, the slow melodic verses which suddenly abrupt into dramatic harmony, and the awesome instrumental which has elements similar to Deep Purple and Pink Floyd, while still remaining unique.

It was after hearing this album I began to appreciate 'Still Life' and other albums. They are a band that get better with every listen, so if you are into bands such as Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Porcupine Tree or even Radiohead, there are worse things to do than listening to this with an open mind!