STILL LIFE

This is a concept album set in the Middle Ages about a man who having been kicked out of his village returns years later to get Melinda, the woman he loves. I read somewhere that Mikael Akeffeldt named his daughter (who was born a few years after this record was released) Melinda.There is a real balancing act going on throughout this album between the heavy and the acoustic. Let me just say the balance is just right.

"The Moor" opens so quietly for 2 minutes until we get some normal volume acoustic guitar that sounds great. 30 seconds later it is slammed by some crushing heaviness and growly vocals. 5 minutes in the vocals sound really good as does the instrumental work. The sound calms right down 8 minutes in then acoustic the guitar is played as some soaring guitar can be heard in the background. Reseved vocals 9 1/2 minutes in remind me of "Damnation". The last minute of the song is crushingly heavy. "Godhead's Lament" opens with an all out assault before settling down 4 minutes in. Normal vocals 5 minutes in and the soundscape sounds amazing. "Benighted" is simply a beautiful acoustic song. "Moonlapse Vertigo" opens with 2 minutes of incredible music. The vocals arrive with a beautiful melody in tow. Rough vocals 3 minutes in and the song gets a little heavier before 6 minutes. Nice. The vocals are normal for the last 2 minutes of the song.

"Face Of Melinda" is slower paced to begin with as acoustic guitar melodies and reserved vocals lead the way. 4 1/2 minutes in the song gets shredded by some ripping guitar. The guitar melodies that follow sound amazing. "Serenity Painted Death" has some nice head banging riffs before 2 minutes. The guitar is great a minute later. I love the twists and turns in this song. There is a beautiful acoustic passage 4 1/2 minutes in that is blown away a minute later. The song ends quietly. "White Cluster" opens with growly vocals that last a couple of minutes. The next 3 minutes are heavenly. The heaviness is back 6 minutes in as the contrast continues.

I think my favourite track is "Face Of Melinda" although there is not an average song on this album they all are good. I can't rate it as high as "Damnation" because there is something magical about that album that moves me so much. I can't really explain why. I want to thank "evenless" for talking me into getting into OPETH's other albums. Growls and all. 4.5 stars.

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