BLACKWATER PARK

Opeth claim to very rarely rehearse material when writing a new album. Mikael Akerfeldt has made it clear in interviews that he and his bandmates are lazy by nature, and would much rather hang around the house playing computer games than practicing new material. This is a stunning bit of information when you take into consideration the absolute musical excellence that has graced their four studio albums. And this is also perplexing when considering that any given Opeth song is full of all sorts of twists and turns, complex arrangements and heavily involved craftsmanship. They reportedly rehearsed only three times for this album. What would happen if this band actually did decide to rehearse frequently? Would the outcome prove to be even more brilliant? I'm not even going to try to figure this out, especially in light of the fact that a great multitude of bands practice 5 times a week and will still never come even close to possessing the magnificence of Opeth.

The most vital portion of information to acknowledge when confronted with Blackwater Park, the fifth chapter in the legacy of Opeth, is the involvement of Steven Wilson, who some will recognize from the progressive rock act Porcupine Tree. Wilson is the man behind the gorgeous production job on this album, easily the best sound to ever grace an Opeth album. He also contributes vocals during certain moments of "Bleak" and "The Drapery Falls", trading lines with Akerfeldt in the former and working in tandem with him in the latter, as well as adding some piano and guitar work during other moments. It also seems that Steven Wilson has had an effect on the band's experimentation with strange vocal and guitar effects. But that's as far as his influence goes on Blackwater Park, as the material on display is very much Opeth. The only other way he may have influenced the band here is by his presence alone, putting pressure on the band to come up with something better than really good, especially since Mikael holds Wilson in such high regard.

It must be said, however, that on my first couple of listens I felt something that I had never felt before with their previous material. A slight disappointment. A feeling that Opeth may be settling into a comfortable niche. Besides the amazing production job and the odd experiments with effects, I did not hear anything new coming from this material. And with the band becoming increasingly more comfortable repeating sections and placing choruses in their songs, something started on the previous Still Life album, I was afraid that perhaps they were playing it a bit safe now that they have made a significant impact on the metal scene. It's just that Opeth have set such a high standard, not just for their (would be) peers, but for themselves as well. But with a few more concentrated listens, the utter genius of this music fully revealed itself to me, and I was left awestruck. Opeth have taken their sound and style to the highest imaginable plateau, and it doesn't seem that there will be any way they can take it beyond it's current status without experimenting further or traveling down an alien path. Everything one has come to expect from Opeth is here, just presented more exquisitely and refined to it's sharpest point.

Some of Opeth's most impressive moments can be found in "Bleak" (an amazing song, with the aforementioned Wilson vocal contribution and excellent dynamics), "Dirge For November" ( a singer/songwriter styled acoustic intro with Akerfeldt's cleanly sung lamenting, cascading into brooding, dark as death heaviness and contemplative clean guitar sections.) and the crushing title track, which acts as a showcase of some of the excellent riffwork, as well as the fastest tempo ever heard in an Opeth song (during the next to last lyrical phrase). "Harvest" is the token acoustic track, with Akerfeldt's smooth crooning guiding the way, and Wilson's piano work beautifully decorates the pleasant instrumental, "Patterns In The Ivy", and "The Leper Affinity", "The Drapery Falls" and "The Funeral Portrait" all showcase the band's undeniable greatness when it comes to skill, songwriting and emotionally moving musical themes.

My favorite Opeth album is still Morningrise, and I wouldn't say that Blackwater Park is "better" than Still Life, but there's no denying the essentialness of this album to anyone's collection, even if they've never heard of the band. This is beyond just metal music. This is musical art, plain and simple. And anyone who claims to have good taste in music simply must recognize Opeth's place as one of the greatest bands of all time, regardless of genre.