Opeth, Pale communion

With the risk of attracting the wrath of the older Opeth fans, I have to say I’m very happy that they’re continuing on the path they started with Heritage. This is an album that’s more prog rock than progressive metal, but personally I love it. It’s moody, it’s complex, it’s experimental and surprising and I am hooked. The reviews are a whole lot better for this album then for Heritage and I don’t know if it’s because Opeth fans needed time to get used to the changes, but for the moment I think I like Heritage better. Pale communion is a lot more cohesive and unitary and generally that’s a good thing, but personally I was more intrigued by the experimentation and weirdness of Heritage. Still, an excellent album that definitely has the potential of dethroning Heritage after more listens.

Eternal rains will come – now that’s a sudden start, they’re getting straight to business. I’m fascinated with how many changes of tempo and atmosphere they can have on the course of one single song (and not even such a long one) and still everything flows and seems from the same picture. And oh god, I LOVE that Windowpane-like guitar. I’m also completely in love with that recurring keyboard part. It’s a song that puts you a trance and I’m already mesmerised with the genius of this band.

Cusp of eternity – I’m writing this review as I’m listening to the song and I love this so much I’m having trouble putting into words all the emotions and enthusiasm I’m experiencing. Mikael’s vocals are absolutely brilliant, he’s the perfect example of how you don’t need to cover the range of a piano with your voice to be an excellent singer.

Moon above, sun bellow – I’m usually all about the subjective appreciation of music, but Opeth are one of those bands that are brilliant objectively as well. Even though a lot of their charm is based on the atmosphere they’re able to create, simply listening to the technical aspects and how they change keys and time signatures and styles is enough to awe even the most pretentious musician, I think. Moon above, sun bellow makes no exception. I am completely in love with it, with its intensity and the carousel of emotions it takes me through, with the harmonies and how well everything is put together. I’m also amazed by how easily they go from gentle and soothing to gloomy and then to grand and I have no idea how Mikael makes the “only circles on the water” part to seem so inspiring when the theme of the song is so depressing and stark.

Elysian woes – you do realise I’m not going to be able to say anything more about this album other than how much I love it and how amazing it is, right? It’s the definitely the kind of album that you need to pay attention to, though, listening to it while doing something else reduces the impact almost to zero, you just have to sink yourself into it to properly appreciate it.

Goblin – behold prog rock in all its wonder and glory! Normally I love Opeth’s instrumental parts, but this time for some reason, I keep waiting for Mikael to kick in. And this is the worst thing I can say about this album.

River – the first part sounds like the love child between Opeth and Deep Purple, with keyboards that are an obvious shout out to Jon Lord, but as the song unfolds, it gets better and better, going from mellow to desolate, to angry, to desperate, culminating with the intensity of the final minute. The only thing that I’m not really keen on is the abrupt ending.

Voice of treason – I get a lot of deranged stalker vibes from this song, the violin part especially sounds like the soundtrack of an old psychological thriller. They pull of creepiness and mood swings very well.

Faith in others – I can’t get over the beauty of it all. I feel like my heart is ready to explode from all the sentiments poured into it. It’s a song that makes me vibrate and I admire them greatly for how they are able to create such powerful emotions with their music. I also like how the darkness and desolation of the album become a ray of hope at the end. It’s bittersweet, but finally there is peace.