MORNINGRISE

I'm giving Opeth's second release four stars, but I'm half-tempted to five simply because of how underrated this album is. It seems to me like anything before their fourth album, "Still Life", gets way too much criticism. This is a great album! It is not quite as good as some of Opeth's other releases, but it is certainly in the same league.

One of the things you'll notice while listening to this is that this album was before Mikael Akerfeldt's growl deepened and matured greatly. It's still good, but is not what it would soon become. Also, every song is over 10 minutes, proving that this is not your typical 90's death metal act. This also includes the 20-minute epic "Black Rose Immortal". Strangely enough, this is my least favorite track, and is possibly why I'm giving this release four stars. I'll explain all of this later. Now that you have a short overview of the album, I'll explain the songs in more detail.

"Advent"- This song has a very cool opening with intense double bass pedals. I love the way the fretless bass is used in this song, and shows how much Johan DeFaralla added to the band. This also has a nice acoustic break that progresses nicely into a proggy riff. A great opener!

"The Night and the Silent Water"- Mikael Akerfeldt wrote this song about the death of his grandfather. This could very well be my favorite song on the album. It starts heavy, and goes into a nice acoustic section with Akerfeldt's clean vocals. This progresses into another heavy section that goes into a dark, melodic, and awesome last few minutes. The song ends on a cool acoustic guitar harmony. Another great track!

"Nectar"- This song begins on a drum intro that goes into the main riff. I love the way the riff is heavy and melodic, and the way the acoustic guitars blend beautifully with the electric. This song is very good as well. "Nectar" has a proggy and complex ending that is very enjoyable for any prog fan.

"Black Rose Immortal"- The 20-minute epic on Morningrise. This is the longest song Opeth has ever recorded. Sadly, it is my least favorite song on the whole album. While it has great music, it lacks what creates a great epic. There are NO repeating themes in the song. All of the music is very good, but it has nothing that makes it feel like one epic track. With that said, it is still an excellent prog metal song that is not worth skipping.

"To Bid You Farwell"- The closing song on this album features no death metal growls, which is another thing proving that these guys weren't your average death metal act. This song reminds me of something off of their "Damnation" album. This is a very good song that any prog fan (not just prog metal fan) needs to hear.

This isn't the place to start listening to Opeth (that would be "Still Life"), but it is a great, highly underappreciated album. It's a shame that this was the last album with bassist Johan DeFaralla. It's clear how much he and his fretless bass added to Opeth. This is a highly recommended album to anybody who already is familiar with some of Opeth's other music.

4/5 stars.