GHOST REVERIES

Ghost Reveries has to be my favorite Opeth album. One of the best Death and Progressive metal albums ever made; it combines atmosphere with Extreme Death Metal perfectly. Mikael Akerfeldt has finally developed his gutteral vocals to mere perfection and clean vocals to the same standard. The riffs have evolved and the melodies matured.

The album begins with a ten-minute grinder, Ghost of Perdition. A great opening for the album and introduce the music concepts behind it. The rest of the album flows with seven more songs varying from lengths of eleven minutes to three minutes. The songs have different styles driving them, some from a Porcupine Tree sound like Atonement, others of a largely Death metal root like The Grand Conjuration. Though Death metal, experimental and acoustic themes occur regularly throughout the album. The Death metal sound lies mainly in the central use of riffs, the vocals, and dissonance, but not the mainstay of their writing, constant use of slow, melodic sections and clean vocals are prominent idea. As a whole, it is not driven by technical ability, but rather, driven by virtuoso writing and use of atmosphere. The riffs used in this album are what truly separate Opeth from conventional Death Metal riffs and musical design, though to the great contrast of melodic and atmospheric qualities breaks the mold of conventional Extreme Prog Metal.

This album IS a must have for anyone looking to have a complete Prog collection. Let alone Opeth is one of the most definitive bands in the Prog metal genre, the perfection of this album demands respect and at least some interest from Proggers across the board.