BLACKWATER PARK

Ok, this is probably my favourite record from my favourite band. I will try to be as objective and unbiased as possible, but how can one be perfectly objective in a world of subjectivity? Nevertheless, I will assume the role of the casual listener to be as fair as possible. Here are the reviews of the individual songs:

1. Leper Affinity: The fade in on the dissonant chord to the explosive intro may sound a bit too much to the Opeth-untrained ears at first, but I assure you it will grow on you. Ripping growls, fluid heavy riffs that are also heavily layered. The blend is perfect. Huge dissonance at about 2:00 which makes it sound even better. The breaks are perfect in execution, the solos well played and emotional. Again, I must iterate how well the breaks are played. Take the break at about the 4 minute mark, flowing perfectly into the slow moody part after. A great buildup of leads there. The fifth minute sees a quiter acoustic part with all the interesting melodies that we have started to associate with Opeth. Repetition of the intro later on, blending in perfectly with the riffs before and after. A very good laidback last heavy riff, which then goes into a chillout piano bit that never grows old. Evil yet calm. The piano outro is just perfect, fitting in with the second song very well. [8]

2. Bleak: A very memorable intro, pounding kick and snare, dark acoustic. We see the perfect switches from clean to heavy and back yet again. The riff at around 3:15 is nothing short of amazing. Laidback but not overdone, as some riffs of similar bands tend to be. Great clean vocals and layering. Amazingly well done acoustic parts. Some parts are very jazzy sounding, like the bit which starts at around the five minute mark. These are the trademark of this style. The lead is warm and soft, just perfect. Bands of this style tend to have a cold gritty sound, washed in reverb for the ambience. Opeth obtain their ambience from the melodic harmonies rather than the laidback mixing. The song ends with a great old record kind of effect. Great song [8+]

3. Harvest: A mostly acoustic song. Perfect position as third of the tracks. Amazing vocal harmonies. Great washy effects. Spaced out and almost psychadelic during some parts, but never overdone. Very subtle. Soft yet very present solo. Repetitive but never boring, a perfect break from the heaviness. [8]

4. The Drapery Falls: This remains one of my favourite songs. The introduction never ceases to give me the goosebumps. The chords are disturbing yet very melodic. The sliding lead was done with an e-bow, giving it the sweeping feel. The vocals are sad and harmonized perfectly with the music. "Pull me down and guide me into..." remains as my favourite line. That part has the most amazing change I have ever listened to. Interesting proggish riff at around 5:50, one which seems to give them some trouble when playing live too! Excellent songwriting, never too sudden, but never predictable. The epic rhythm at the eight minute mark leads into the intro, and gives you the goosebumps yet again. The song fades out on the intro riff, the drums changing to a constant double kick, adding to the ambience. I'm going to hate myself for this, but I'm going to rate this song a 10. Keep in mind I don't do that lightly. [10]

5. Dirge for November: Another one of my favourites. Starts slowly with acoustic and vocals. Very warm. I think I hear Mike losing a note somewhere in the intro, but nothing too bad. This leads into a faster paced acoustic and warm lead part, the type that always reminds you of who you are listening to. The heavy riff that starts after that is nothing special technically speaking, but is very emotional. The change into the second riff always amazes me. The choice of chords is just perfect. This song is one of the most ambient that Opeth has. The clean guitar outro is another of the mellow kind, and never boring though quite lengthy. [9]

6. The Funeral Portrait: A very dissonant clean intro that leads into a very heavy riff. Mike seems to lose one the screams a little bit there. Very proggish sounding guitars. These always keep you interested, though the songwriting here is not as exceptional as on some of the other songs here. A very welcome lead at 4:30, breaking the mood somewhat. Again, not exceptional. There is also a certain lack of dynamics that is present in the other songs. [7+]

7. Patterns in the Ivy: A very beautiful mellow guitar break. Exceptional acoustic songwriting. A piano blends in perfectly with the guitar. The chords are disturbing yet relaxed. Very jazzy sounding accidentals. [9]

8. Blackwater Park: The masterpiece of the album. The intro is again headcrunching. Perfect flow of riffs and lead. 1:47, a fantastic short acoustic break that leads into one of the heaviest riffs by Opeth, helped along by a guttural growl. Very prog metal sounding riffs, yet very dark. This goes into a clean break, where you can start to feel the tension grow, but wait... you're wrong, it does not go into another heavy part, but stays clean with a buildup of vocal ambience and lead. This unpredictability keeps the music amazing for years of listening. Then comes the heavy stuff. A reversed whooshing effect leads into this perfectly. Great crunchy riffs around here. Good fast lead too, along with the slower bluesier stuff that Mike pulls of perfectly. The eighth minute riff is the kind that headbangers find paradise in, constant yet heavy and rhythmic. I'd hate to keep saying 'great', so i'll use 'big'. Big outro. And I mean, big! Heavy riffs that fade into the moodiest acoustic outro, the kind that leave you speechless and wanting for more. [9+]

Ahh well, I wan't too objective I must say. But I tried to be as fair as possible when rating the songs. Though the average rating computed to 8.6, I'll rate the album 9 since the great songs really make this a masterpiece and there were no letdowns overall. OVERALL, 9