DELIVERANCE

Deliverance is one of Opeth's heaviest albums, which is the excact opposite of Damnation, which was released just slightly after it. Many people accuse the album of not doing anything new, having bad songwriting and being kind of blank. I don't agree with any of these, and I think Deliverance is a very good piece of music. It is slightly more straight forward than most other Opeth releases, and does have some sort of cheesy sounding riffs, but what's important that it all is done very well, resulting in a very enjoyable record.

The album opens with the rough "Wreath". A more typical metal song that's not as progressive as most of Opeth's songs. It also is one of their heaviest, featuring lots of heavy, distorted guitar playing and growling vocals. It is by no means a bad track, though far from the bands best. The title track, "Deliverance" is a much more excellent composition. The song is very progressive, as it combines heavy parts with softer parts, and has some very technical musicianship in it. The final minutes are absolutely wonderful, and among the best Opeth has ever done. Just as much as "Deliverance" I enjoy "Master's Apprentices", that just like "Wreath" is less progressive than most Opeth has done. The song starts of incredibly heavy, with a typical metal riff and double bass druming. After a while it becomes more variated and mellow though, which results in a very enjoyable song.

"A Fair Judgement" is a softer track, though still having its louder moments. The song features a nice piano intro, but the song doesn't reach the greatness of "Master's Apprentices" and the title track. "For Absent Friends" is a short instrumental interlude. It gives us a soft break from all the roughness on the album, and is a nice little piece. Unfortunately the album isn't all good. "By The Pain I See In Others" is a song I don't like at all. The opening riff sounds terribly annoying, and although being pretty diverse, the song doesn't do anything to me at all. A very weak ending of an excellent album.

Apart from the final track the album is full of good music. It isn't the bands best effort, but it definately is enjoyable and has some brilliant moments. I would recommend this album to anybody who likes the heaviest side of Opeth and doesn't mind a some less progressive metal than an album like Blackwater Park. I will rate Deliverance four stars, as it is far from perfect but still very good.