Review: Opeth - Heritage

Opeth’s transition from metal to the realm of progressive rock is by no means a surprising one. Singer, guitarist & songwriter Mikael Åkerfeldt is known as a self-proclaimed “prog-head”, and his deep affection for acts such as Camel, King Crimson and Pink Floyd has been reflected, to some degree, in the band’s pleasurable fusion of sophisticated guttural metal and soft blends of Prog and Swedish folk. Indeed, since the release of Deliverance in 2002, Opeth’s grasp of metal has weakened steadily with each release, culminating in the dichotomous Watershed, a clear sign of the band’s upcoming departure from the world of death growls, long riffs and double-bass-heavy drumming.

Heritage stands out within the band’s rich discography not only because of how drastically different it sounds to Deliverance or My Arms Your Hearse, but also because, as different as it is, there’s so much in common here with the band’s past work that this album fits in the band’s catalog as a sign of extremely natural evolution. If you like Opeth for the rhythm changes, strong acoustic instrumentation and progressive structures, you’re going to feel right at home with Heritage – despite having no death growls whatsoever and much gentler guitar distortion, Heritage definitely does sound like Opeth

That said, Heritage also doesn’t sound at all like Damnation. This album doesn’t have an Opeth ballad in the vein of Benighted, Credence, Isolation Years or even Burden. All the songs in Heritage (excluding the opening and closing instrumentals) come, at some point, to a level of intensity that easily matches their heaviest parts, even if it isn’t as loud. However, as expected from a progressive album, there are soothing moments of incredible beauty here - dark, foreboding sounds that harken back to the likes of Face of Melinda and To Rid the Disease.

What is it?

Heritage has so many influences that it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what it sounds like. The insanely Jazzy Nepenthe is a psychedelic journey through absolutely psychotic musicianship, mixing the famous brush-sticks with strong bass work, disturbing keys and shredding guitars courtesy of the masterful Fredrik Åkesson who, by the way, does a spectacular job playing leads throughout this album, elegantly walking the fine line between sheer metal crunch and gentler melodies that would fit rather nicely in a blues song.

You’ll hear much more than jazz here – the second half of Famine is a delightful mix of keys, vocals, ominous flutes and one of the band’s heaviest riffs to date, a trudging sound that brings Candlemass to mind. The appropriately-named I feel the Dark and Häxprocess put a heavy emphasis on classical guitars, and the latter also has an Hours of Wealth-like guitar solo from Åkerfeldt concluding it that will surely have you shut your eyes and revel in its melodic licks.

There are two oddballs here, though. Opeth’s tribute to the great Ronnie James Dio, titled Slither, sounds a lot like A Twist in the Tale from Deep Purple, and its fast-paced, short structure may feel a bit out of place to some listeners. On its own, it’s a fantastic ride, but this writer feels it would fit better as a bonus track. The other is The Lines in My Hands. Unlike Slither, this shorty fits perfectly in the middle of a run of three 7 –and 8-minute songs, and is the only song on Heritage that doesn’t sound like anything Opeth’s done before whatsoever. It is completely fresh-sounding, juggling between incredible bass grooves, playful acoustic guitars and vocals that serve no other purpose really than to layer the enchanting instrumentation, right before going into a frenzied mix of distorted guitars and some of Åkerfeldt’s most rock star-ish vocals yet, setting the intensity level high enough for the beginning of Folklore (an absolute highlight of Åkerfeldt’s career as a musician) to slowly creep into your consciousness with its Swedish folk melody.

The voice of growth

Anyone who’s familiar with Opeth would look forward to hearing Åkerfeldt’s vocals on any new material the band releases, and with good reason – Mikael’s emotive voice is one of the band’s selling points, yet the guy decided to take more of a back seat on this one. Whereas on albums like Ghost Reveries and Watershed his vocals were always up front, here they mix with the mix, never loud enough to obscure the powerful instrumental work done here, but never low enough as to let it overwhelm him. You’ll hear much more of the rasp heard in Burden and Hessian Peel – Åkerfeldt is not a professionally trained vocalist, but he confidently lets it all out here, resulting in a more intense vocal performance than on past endeavors, casting care to the wind and shipping the thing complete with vocal imperfections. With that in mind, you’ll still hear plenty of the softness he’s become famous for, and the two styles mix wonderfully.

From an instrumental standpoint as well, Heritage is an absolute delicacy. Despite incredible guitar work from Åkerfeldt and Åkesson, it’s the work by bassist Martin Mendez and drummer Martin Axernot that nearly steal the show here. Recorded live, the drums and bass on this album are absolutely inspiring, with nary a moment of tedious, just-there rhythms. The two work together magically to provide a deep, necessary layer to the music that will have the listener pondering why so many bands choose not to emphasize those instruments enough. Per Wiberg is to be commended as well, as this talented keyboarding does an amazing job of upgrading the songs with the diverse sounds of organs and mellotrons. To top it all off, classical instruments such as flutes and oboes are used in precise quantities, granting Heritage some continuity with Watershed and enriching the band’s sound.

Recorded using more traditional techniques and equipment, Heritage doesn’t sound as sonically refined as Ghost Reveries, but enjoys a more natural sound that’s more reminiscent of something recorded in the 70s. A balanced mix courtesy of mixing expert Steven Wilson rounds things up nicely, and nothing ever sounds out of place or overwhelming.

The only real glaring issue I have with Heritage is that it’s not a very lyrically strong album. Opeth has never been known for its complex, ocean-deep lyrics and sadly Heritage is no exception. It’s hard for me to make sense of most of the songs here, and Åkerfeldt’s foray into political themes (The Lines in My Hand) could have been handled better, if not discarded completely.

Closure

Heritage is definitely a progressive rock album, but it manages to sound wholly new in a well-tread genre. It is dark, intense, emotional and sophisticated, and it’s absolutely impossible to ignore the musical achievements reached here. All members of the band come together and create a stunning musical whole that’s better than the sum of its spectacular parts. It might be tarnished a little bit by the inclusion of Slither and the less-than-impressive lyrics, but one short replay of the ending melody of Folklore (an incredible reference to The Drapery Falls) will mitigate any shortcoming this album has. It is chock-full of moments that will have you grinning with an incredible sensation of listening to something that’s warmly familiar and delightfully fresh at the same time.

Mikael Åkerfeldt proves his potency as a musician in that, in creating something that’s undoubtedly very different from the band’s previous efforts, it still retains that Opeth atmosphere of darkness and beauty that we’ve come to love him for. Heritage is definitely a doozy, and a hallmark release not just for Opeth, but for progressive rock, and music, in general.

Score: 9.7/10

View and buy Heritage on Roadrunner Records

Review: Anathema - Weather Systems

People who know me can testify that I feel very strongly about music, that I take it seriously, and that when I talk about it – I talk about it with passion. That’s because I believe that music is the most powerful artistic force on this planet – people can paint, write or film whatever they want, but a beautiful image can’t hold a candle to a stunning melody brought to life by the right instruments. I listen to music because it’s there that I find the empathy, the emotional shelter and the non-talking friend that will never answer me, present me with questions or judge me.

That doesn’t happen when I listen to Hip-Hop, Trance music, Reggae or Rihanna. My musical upbringing is varied enough that I can allow myself to completely ignore these types of music (some more often than not which I consider an industry rather than a group of musicians) and concentrate on what moves me. That’s something that British super-band Anathema has been doing for a while now, from the moment I first popped Judgement in the player and heard One Last Goodbye for the first time as few years ago.

Evolution

This shapeshifter of a band has been honing its sound over the years with such masterworks as A Fine Day to Exit and, more recently, We’re Here Because We’re Here, and the result is the mind-blowing Weather Systems. Preferring atmosphere and richness to over-complicated structures, Anathema didn’t create songs here that follow the traditional verse-chorus-verse-solo-chorus template you might expect from a rock band. What Anathema has done here is beyond words.  Verbally, it cannot be expressed.

Weather Systems is all about emotion. There’s teamwork here - the lyrics tell the listener about feelings, and the music induces them. When Daniel Cavanagh set out to write Weather Systems, he said that “the music is written to deeply move the listener”. Well, Mr. Cavanagh, Mission Accomplished. When you put your earphones on and start playing this record, you will close your eyes, listening so closely you might find yourself trying to breathe the sound, just to soak it all in. With a full band, two vocalists, several effects and an orchestra going on, you’ll have your work cut out for you, especially on the 5.1 mix that comes on the special-edition DVD.

The album starts with a fast-picked acoustic guitar and Vincent Cavanagh’s rich vocals, introducing the listener to the two-part Untouchable, which sets the tone for the remainder of the album – emotional, powerful and draining. You’ll hear more of the fantastic Lee Douglas as well, and by the time she’s finished with Lightning Song, you will be infatuated with the album (and her). You’ll want to listen to it time and time again - when you’re on a bus, when you’re working, when you’re just about to hit the bed at night – one song, just one more, and then another.

Experimentation Breeds Creativity

As with their previous works, it’s when Anathema goes all experimental on us that they shine most. Emotional Winteroutshone everything on Judgement with its 5/6 groove, A Simple Mistake swept me off my feet with its incredible transitions. Obviously, every band’s most experimental songs often end up being their most memorable, and indeed, The Storm Before the Calm is something very, very memorable. Its initial groove might make you think you’re in for a rocker, yet soon enough the song becomes a mesh of guitars, drums, winds and electronics that sounds like a nightmare more so than anything else. No solos, no vocals, just this… noise. It keeps going for several minutes, disturbing you to the core. You look at the timer and see there are four more minutes of song to go.

Just when that happens, the aural storm subsides and you’re treated to the peak of the album, a punch of band and strings that reaches into your chest, grabs your heart and tears it out so softly you enjoy it. When I listen to this song, I know how right I am dismissing the “industry” in favor of this (Thank you, John Douglas). Fortunately, despite not peaking at the end, the album dodges tedium and carries on being the amazing masterpiece that it is, and by the time it’s done, you’ll be drained, numb and pleased.

Conclusion

When I say music can be empowering, it’s pieces like Weather Systems that immediately spring to mind. Anathema’s sound is evolving in ways that I absolutely love. The addition of the orchestra (especially an amazing outro to The Lost Child), the stronger emphasis on Lee Douglas as a vocalist, the incredible melodies and the whole atmosphere of the album make it one of the strongest, most powerful collections of music that I’ve ever heard. It sends shivers down my spine, shakes me around and leaves me speechless every time I listen to it, it’s just that  powerful. The band has evolved its sound to a place of completeness, and Weather System is the musical paragon that I’ve been looking for since I first heard Anathema’s very own Judgement or Opeth’s Damnation.

All I can say is that I wish the world had been populated with more musicians like Daniel Cavanagh, bands like Anathema and albums like Weather Systems. If music is anything more to you than a means of passing time, you should listen to Weather Systems. I urge you to.

Score: 10/10

View and buy Weather Systems on Kscope