Compilation By Jon Dolan, Dan Epstein, Reed Fischer, Richard Gehr, Brandon Geist, Kory Grow, Will Hermes, Ryan Reed, Jon Weiderhorn (rolling stone)
For close to a half century, prog has been the breeding ground for rock's most out-there, outsized and outlandish ideas: Thick-as-a-brick concept albums, an early embrace of synthesizers, overly complicated time signatures, Tolkienesque fantasies, travails from future days and scenes from a memory. In celebration of Rush's first Rolling Stone cover story, here's the best of the deliciously decadent genre that the punks failed to kill.
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OPETH
''BLACKWATER PARK''
MARCH 12 2001
75:54
1 The Leper Affinity 10:23
2 Bleak 09:15
3 Harvest 06:01
4 The Drapery Falls 10:53
5 Dirge For November 07:53
6 The Funeral Portrait 08:44
7 Patterns In The Ivy 01:52
8 Blackwater Park 12:08
9 Still Day Beneath The Sun 04:31
10 Patterns In The Ivy II 04:09
All Tracks By Opeth
Mikael Åkerfeldt – vocals, guitars
Peter Lindgren – guitars
Martin Mendez – bass guitar
Martin Lopez – drums
Additional personnel:
Steven Wilson – voice, guitar, piano
Markus Lindberg - 3 eggs
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ABOUT THE ALBUM/WIKIPEDIA
**********
REVIEW/AMG
By Eduardo Rivadavia
Not since the release of Tiamat's groundbreaking masterpiece Wildhoney in 1994 had the extreme metal scene witnessed such an overwhelming show of fan enthusiasm and uniform critical praise as that bestowed upon Blackwater Park, the astounding fifth effort from Swedish metal titans Opeth. A work of breathtaking creative breadth, Blackwater Park (named after an obscure German progressive rock outfit from the 1970s) keeps with Opeth's tradition by transcending the limits of death/black metal and repeatedly shattering the foundations of conventional songwriting, to boot. Rarely does a band manage to break new ground without losing touch with its roots, but Opeth has made a career of it -- perhaps never as effortlessly as on this occasion. But the biggest difference between Blackwater Park and previous offerings lies not in the remarkably high songwriting standards achieved by main man Mikael Åkerfeldt (that's a given with him), but in the first-time involvement of Porcupine Tree leader Steve Wilson, whose contributions as producer lend an unprecedented fluidity to Opeth's restlessly inventive arrangements. Like all Opeth LPs, Blackwater Park is divided not so much into songs as "movements," as the band likes to call them. Tracks start and finish in seemingly arbitrary fashion, usually traversing ample musical terrain, including acoustic guitar and solo piano passages, ambient soundscapes, stoner rock grooves, and Eastern-tinged melodies -- any of which are subject to savage punctuations of death metal fury at any given moment. Likewise, Åkerfeldt's vocals run the gamut from bowel-churning grunts to melodies of chilling beauty -- depending on each movement section's mood. With all this in mind, singling out specific highlights is pretty much a futile exercise; but for the benefit of first-time listeners, why not start out with the colossal, Arabian-flavored riffs of "Bleak," the memorable chorus of "The Drapery Falls," the surprisingly gentle intro of "Dirge for November," and, finally, the all-encompassing title track. Then, with patience (Opeth's music is everything but immediate), the rest of Blackwater Park's grand scheme will be revealed. As for more experienced Opeth disciples, few will disagree with the fact that, even compared to lofty prior achievements, Blackwater Park is surely the band's coming-of-age album, and therefore, an ideal introduction to its remarkable body of work.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
By Mike DaRonco
Brought together in Stockholm by guitarists Peter Lindgren and Mikael Åkerfeldt in 1990, Opeth added progressive influences and acoustic instrumentation to their brand of Swedish death metal. As the group progressed, it was very common for an Opeth live set to fly in several different musical directions -- and an average song lasted no less than ten minutes. Impressed by their originality, Candlelight Records released their debut full-length in 1995, which was titled Orchid, and featured a rhythm section of bassist Johan de Farfalla and drummer Anders Nordin. Edge of Sanity mastermind Dan Swano produced the band's ambitious second album, Morningrise, in 1996, after which they embarked on a brief tour with Morbid Angel. Century Media took notice and not only licensed Opeth's first two albums for the United States, but also planned on releasing their next album on both sides of the Atlantic. With the recruitment of bassist Martin Mendez and drummer Martin Lopez (ex-Amon Amarth) to replace the departed de Farfalla and Nordin, Opeth's third album, My Arms, Your Hearse, was released in 1998 to glowing reviews, establishing the band as a leading force in progressive metal with death roots.
Released in 1999, Still Life displayed even more of the band's prog rock influences, and the following year the band played its first U.S. concert at the Milwaukee Metalfest. Blackwater Park, titled after an obscure psychedelic prog outfit from the '70s, was released in early 2001. The album created a huge buzz among progressive metal fans, who had begun to lump the band in with other experimental metal bands like Tiamat. Instead of waiting until the buzz died down, the band released Deliverance in the fall of 2002. The following year, Opeth surprised fans with the release of Damnation, an album that was almost completely devoid of any heavy metal trappings and focused instead on acoustic instruments and traditional songwriting. Ghost Reveries arrived in 2005 and proved to be a return to form for the band. Opeth returned in 2007 with Roundhouse Tapes: Opeth Live, and in 2008 with the all-new studio album Watershed. In 2010, the band followed up with another live album, In Live Concert at the Royal Albert Hall. The set was recorded at the famous London venue and featured the band playing its breakout album, Blackwater Park, in its entirety.
Opeth shifted stylistic gears dramatically for 2011's Heritage. While writing for the album, Åkerfeldt fell under the spell of the music of Swedish folk music, Alice Cooper, and many spaces between. The sound, while remaining Opeth's, was also quite different, far more prog than death metal. In fact, if anything, it was the sound of the band leaving death metal behind. The album's cover was loaded with symbolism depicting the change. Heritage was also the last Opeth recording to feature keyboardist Per Wiberg. The album was released in September on Roadrunner. The new musical direction displayed on Heritage was, if anything, the origin for the next chapter in the band's musical evolution. After a global tour and a long rest, the band returned to recording in Sweden with mixing engineer Steven Wilson. Pale Communion, released in August of 2014, was a complete abandonment of metal for prog rock.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
*********
TO THE TOP
For close to a half century, prog has been the breeding ground for rock's most out-there, outsized and outlandish ideas: Thick-as-a-brick concept albums, an early embrace of synthesizers, overly complicated time signatures, Tolkienesque fantasies, travails from future days and scenes from a memory. In celebration of Rush's first Rolling Stone cover story, here's the best of the deliciously decadent genre that the punks failed to kill.
**********
OPETH
''BLACKWATER PARK''
MARCH 12 2001
75:54
1 The Leper Affinity 10:23
2 Bleak 09:15
3 Harvest 06:01
4 The Drapery Falls 10:53
5 Dirge For November 07:53
6 The Funeral Portrait 08:44
7 Patterns In The Ivy 01:52
8 Blackwater Park 12:08
9 Still Day Beneath The Sun 04:31
10 Patterns In The Ivy II 04:09
All Tracks By Opeth
Mikael Åkerfeldt – vocals, guitars
Peter Lindgren – guitars
Martin Mendez – bass guitar
Martin Lopez – drums
Additional personnel:
Steven Wilson – voice, guitar, piano
Markus Lindberg - 3 eggs
**********
ABOUT THE ALBUM/WIKIPEDIA
**********
REVIEW/AMG
By Eduardo Rivadavia
Not since the release of Tiamat's groundbreaking masterpiece Wildhoney in 1994 had the extreme metal scene witnessed such an overwhelming show of fan enthusiasm and uniform critical praise as that bestowed upon Blackwater Park, the astounding fifth effort from Swedish metal titans Opeth. A work of breathtaking creative breadth, Blackwater Park (named after an obscure German progressive rock outfit from the 1970s) keeps with Opeth's tradition by transcending the limits of death/black metal and repeatedly shattering the foundations of conventional songwriting, to boot. Rarely does a band manage to break new ground without losing touch with its roots, but Opeth has made a career of it -- perhaps never as effortlessly as on this occasion. But the biggest difference between Blackwater Park and previous offerings lies not in the remarkably high songwriting standards achieved by main man Mikael Åkerfeldt (that's a given with him), but in the first-time involvement of Porcupine Tree leader Steve Wilson, whose contributions as producer lend an unprecedented fluidity to Opeth's restlessly inventive arrangements. Like all Opeth LPs, Blackwater Park is divided not so much into songs as "movements," as the band likes to call them. Tracks start and finish in seemingly arbitrary fashion, usually traversing ample musical terrain, including acoustic guitar and solo piano passages, ambient soundscapes, stoner rock grooves, and Eastern-tinged melodies -- any of which are subject to savage punctuations of death metal fury at any given moment. Likewise, Åkerfeldt's vocals run the gamut from bowel-churning grunts to melodies of chilling beauty -- depending on each movement section's mood. With all this in mind, singling out specific highlights is pretty much a futile exercise; but for the benefit of first-time listeners, why not start out with the colossal, Arabian-flavored riffs of "Bleak," the memorable chorus of "The Drapery Falls," the surprisingly gentle intro of "Dirge for November," and, finally, the all-encompassing title track. Then, with patience (Opeth's music is everything but immediate), the rest of Blackwater Park's grand scheme will be revealed. As for more experienced Opeth disciples, few will disagree with the fact that, even compared to lofty prior achievements, Blackwater Park is surely the band's coming-of-age album, and therefore, an ideal introduction to its remarkable body of work.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
By Mike DaRonco
**********
BIOGRAPHY/WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
*********
TO THE TOP
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