The last few bands I've reviewed were somewhat obscure, but the next album I picked, "Blackwater Park" is by a famous progressive death metal band, Opeth. Progressive or prog metal is a very hard genre to define since it describes a certain sound that the music has. Prog is often marked by complicated riffs and solos, sudden changes in the melody, and weird, often changing timings and rhythms that give the listener a feeling like they are falling into the music, but I'd really recommend just listening to some prog, because this description doesn't quite do the genre justice.
One thing I really like is when a band picks a cover for an album that gives you a good idea what the music is going to sound like, and this album does just that. The picture appears to be of a dark foggy swamp with what appears to be human forms in the background, obscured by the fog. The album cover looks dark and gloomy, and that is exactly what the music sounds like. I also like how the cover sets an atmosphere of foreboding and uneasiness, which pairs well with the rest of the album.
The standout tracks on the album are probably "The Leper Affinity," "Bleak," "Harvest," and "The Drapery Falls." Yes, that is the whole first half of the album, and no, I don't know if I just like those because whenever I listen to the album, I start from the beginning of the album, and as a result I hear those the most.
The first track, "The Leper Affinity," is probably my favorite on the album. Surprisingly, this song isn't actually about the disease leprosy, in this case, the word "leper" is actually being used to mean outcast. The song actually tells a story about a man who goes insane and rapes and murders a girl. Once he kills her, he calms down and realizes the horror of what he did, but instead of feeling remorse, he thinks of the deed as revenge against the world for making him an outcast. The music its self features awesome proggy guitar solos, a catchy guitar riff, and appropriately used harsh vocals that temporarily break into more mellow, Tool like, vocals once the girl is killed in the story. Finally the song ends with a haunting piano melody which sets the tone for the next song.
The next track "Bleak" is much slower and darker. This track is kind of black metaly, with rough growly vocals, and a slow, dark melody that reminds me of Agalloch if they were a little faster and had a rougher guitar sound. This song does a good job of juxtaposing harsh death metal vocals with the much more mellow, dark melody in the background. The result is a cool haunting song. As the title suggests, the song definitely sounds bleak. I'm not actually sure what this song is about, but I think it's about two people and one of them is dying of some horrific disease disease.
"Harvest" is an interesting song because it is the the only song on the album, besides the instrumental "Patterns in the Ivy," to not feature death metal vocals. Instead they are replaced with haunting clean vocals. I know I keep using the word "haunting" do describe different aspects of these songs, but that really is a good description of this album as a whole, haunting. This is the kind of music I'd expect to be playing in a haunted old tavern in some fantasy world. But I digress, these clean vocals create a very haunting mood. In addition, this song has strummed, undistorted (possibly acoustic? I'm not really sure) guitars, which lend well to the vocals. Together the song crates a very dreary atmosphere. This song is also a ballad, which means it has very interesting poem-like lyrics. This song also continues the theme of death in the album. The song is about a dying man, and his experiences shortly before, during, and after death. The title of the song also reflects this; "Harvest" is the process of cutting the crop with a scythe, removing the plant from the world of the living and reaping it to take elsewhere. This is also why there is the grim reaper, he uses the same symbolism.
"The Drapery Falls" is probably my second favorite song on the album (or maybe first, it's hard to decide between this one and "The Leper Affinity"). This is one of the few songs that is able to add real tension into the music. The song starts with the clean vocals used in "Harvest," with cool proggy guitars, but the whole time I know what's coming. The second time he says "pull me down again and guide me into..." there is a short period with non-lyric singing and a guitar solo, followed by awesome death vocals and prog guitars, which continue until the end of the song. For a while I've tried to figure out what this song is about, but I'm not really sure. The best I could come up with is it might be about someone in an abusive relationship.
Even though I didn't mention them as my favorites, the other songs on the album, especially "Dirge for November" and "Blackwater Park," are awesome. This is one of those albums that everyone should listen to at least once. This album is definitely one of the greats, and a must listen for any metalhead/ music enthusiast.
One thing I really like is when a band picks a cover for an album that gives you a good idea what the music is going to sound like, and this album does just that. The picture appears to be of a dark foggy swamp with what appears to be human forms in the background, obscured by the fog. The album cover looks dark and gloomy, and that is exactly what the music sounds like. I also like how the cover sets an atmosphere of foreboding and uneasiness, which pairs well with the rest of the album.
The standout tracks on the album are probably "The Leper Affinity," "Bleak," "Harvest," and "The Drapery Falls." Yes, that is the whole first half of the album, and no, I don't know if I just like those because whenever I listen to the album, I start from the beginning of the album, and as a result I hear those the most.
The first track, "The Leper Affinity," is probably my favorite on the album. Surprisingly, this song isn't actually about the disease leprosy, in this case, the word "leper" is actually being used to mean outcast. The song actually tells a story about a man who goes insane and rapes and murders a girl. Once he kills her, he calms down and realizes the horror of what he did, but instead of feeling remorse, he thinks of the deed as revenge against the world for making him an outcast. The music its self features awesome proggy guitar solos, a catchy guitar riff, and appropriately used harsh vocals that temporarily break into more mellow, Tool like, vocals once the girl is killed in the story. Finally the song ends with a haunting piano melody which sets the tone for the next song.
The next track "Bleak" is much slower and darker. This track is kind of black metaly, with rough growly vocals, and a slow, dark melody that reminds me of Agalloch if they were a little faster and had a rougher guitar sound. This song does a good job of juxtaposing harsh death metal vocals with the much more mellow, dark melody in the background. The result is a cool haunting song. As the title suggests, the song definitely sounds bleak. I'm not actually sure what this song is about, but I think it's about two people and one of them is dying of some horrific disease disease.
"Harvest" is an interesting song because it is the the only song on the album, besides the instrumental "Patterns in the Ivy," to not feature death metal vocals. Instead they are replaced with haunting clean vocals. I know I keep using the word "haunting" do describe different aspects of these songs, but that really is a good description of this album as a whole, haunting. This is the kind of music I'd expect to be playing in a haunted old tavern in some fantasy world. But I digress, these clean vocals create a very haunting mood. In addition, this song has strummed, undistorted (possibly acoustic? I'm not really sure) guitars, which lend well to the vocals. Together the song crates a very dreary atmosphere. This song is also a ballad, which means it has very interesting poem-like lyrics. This song also continues the theme of death in the album. The song is about a dying man, and his experiences shortly before, during, and after death. The title of the song also reflects this; "Harvest" is the process of cutting the crop with a scythe, removing the plant from the world of the living and reaping it to take elsewhere. This is also why there is the grim reaper, he uses the same symbolism.
"The Drapery Falls" is probably my second favorite song on the album (or maybe first, it's hard to decide between this one and "The Leper Affinity"). This is one of the few songs that is able to add real tension into the music. The song starts with the clean vocals used in "Harvest," with cool proggy guitars, but the whole time I know what's coming. The second time he says "pull me down again and guide me into..." there is a short period with non-lyric singing and a guitar solo, followed by awesome death vocals and prog guitars, which continue until the end of the song. For a while I've tried to figure out what this song is about, but I'm not really sure. The best I could come up with is it might be about someone in an abusive relationship.
Even though I didn't mention them as my favorites, the other songs on the album, especially "Dirge for November" and "Blackwater Park," are awesome. This is one of those albums that everyone should listen to at least once. This album is definitely one of the greats, and a must listen for any metalhead/ music enthusiast.
Opeth - Blackwater Park
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1.) The Leper Affinity
2.) Bleak
3.) Harvest
4.) The Drapery Falls
5.) Dirge for November
6.) The Funeral Portrait
7.) Patterns In the Ivy
8.) Blackwater Park
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