DAMNATION

Going into this one I'd say I have very limited knowledge of the songs on it. I had "loved" some of the tracks on Apple Music (Death Whispered a Lullaby and Hope Leaves) , so I've at least heard a few of them. Also, it is my understanding that this album was intended to show that Opeth was not strictly prog-METAL, but could also do a non-metal style of prog. Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree (and so much more) co-produced the album with the band and plays keyboards. He and Mikael Åkerfeldt have collaborated before and since this album. We just discussed their Storm Corrosion album recently.

Without further ado, onto the music!

Track 1 - Windowpane

The album opens with clean electric guitar, which is soon joined by drums & bass in an odd meter pattern. Mikael Åkerfeldt joins in with clean vocals followed by lead, slightly distorted guitar. Wilson has also joined in on mellotron. The track is slowly but surely building as it goes along. We go into a different groove after a drum break at around 3:45. Excellent musicianship all around. It doesn't quite have a 70s feel to me, but quite good.

Track 2 - In My Time of Need.

This one also starts with clean electric guitar, but in a more arpeggiated way. The rhythm section joins in setting up an odd meter (I promise it sounds different from the first song). But when the vocals come in, they are singing in a staccato pattern that creates a poly-rhythmic tension against the instruments. Quite well done. The chorus opens up with mellotron and smoother vocal melodies. Mikael Åkerfeldt's vocals are quite nice. The chorus and bridge sections are beginning to remind me of Moody Blues songs with Wilson's heavy use of mellotron. Really enjoying this!

Track 3 - Death Whispered a Lullaby

An acoustic guitar pattern starts this one off. The band kicks in at the start of the chorus after a sparse first verse. This song seems more in 4/4 but with highly syncopated rhythms. The rhythm changes 3 minutes in for a guitar solo, before returning like the intro afterward. I am noticing that most of the album thus far has not had very dense instrumentation, but it sounds full. Each of the instruments has room to breathe. Wilson and the band have given the production a very open, warm, organic sound. At 4:48, the song abruptly shifts into a more intense sound. Wilson is using the vintage-sounding keyboards to a nice effect along with Åkerfeldt's lead guitar effects to close out the song.

Track 4 - Closure

12-string acoustic and vocals begins this one at around 0:44 the vocal effects give a sound that would not be out of place on a PT (Porcupine Tree) album. After that the band kicks in around a complex guitar riff. A bit of King Crimson influence to my ears. Excellent arrangement with distorted sustained chords coming in until the crescendo gives way to a sudden softer acoustic and vocal section. The vocal harmonies at around 3:25 give PT vibes again (Lips of Ashes). We get a bit of a North African (Moroccan?) feel after this. Outstanding track, probably my favorite, so far.

This song ends abruptly and goes immediately into?

Track 5 - Hope Leaves

?which has a completely different feel. This one also begins with quiet electric guitar, and vocals with effects on them. The rhythm section joins in with the second verse and the voice effect goes away. A nice contrasting instrumental section takes place before the next verse. This track, while very good, seems less complex than the preceding tracks. Maybe a mid-album breather? We shall see what follows.

Track 6 - To Rid the Disease

Again, we start with clean electric guitar and vocals. Then the rhythm section joins in. (I am sensing a theme.) More mellotron follows in the second verse. Every song sounds different, but the arranging choices are a bit similar. Nice guitar solo at around 3:45. Then ?PIANO! First time I've noticed piano. A nice proggy instrumental break develops off of the 3/4 piano pattern to close the song.

Track 7 - Ending Credits

A slow fade in, with the whole band right from the start. The band settles into a nice groove for Åkerfeldt to solo over, with the mellotron making an appearance as he plays. Thinking this one might be an instrumental. Nice harmony guitar leads after 2:35. It is indeed an instrumental?

Track 8 - Weakness

This time we begin with keyboards. It's giving me Led Zep- No Quarter vives. Effect on the voice. After a verse, a mellow guitar line joins in. Remaining mellow, no bass and drums yet. Keep feeling it's going to open up?but it never does. Kind of an anticlimactic ending to a strong album.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:

A very strong album that kind of let me down at the last track. The first several songs share a similar formula, but they don't necessarily suffer from it. Definitely not a metal moment on the album. I'm guessing back in 2003, some Opeth fans were disappointed in the lack of heaviness. I'm not though. I rather enjoyed it. I'll give it a 4/5 stars.