GHOST REVERIES

Opeth's eighth album is the last with Lindgren and Lopez in the lineup and, just as any Opeth album, an impressively crafted, multicoloured beast. Songs are even more diverse here than on previous offerings, vocals are great (growls at least), and the richness of musical ideas floors the listener. At the same time, however, the flow of ideas appears much less organic and consistent than on earlier albums and the atmosphere of the songs strikes me as much less compelling. Together with its successor "Watershed" one can regard "Ghost Reveries" as a milestone in the transition period that would ultimately lead to the new Opeth ? more magnificent than ever ? that confronts us in the marvelous masterpieces "Heritage" and "Pale Communion".

"Ghost of Perdition" opens the album in an instantly recognisable way with a short sequence of arpeggio chords on the keyboard before Mikael's growls enter over pummeling drums and accompanying guitars. While this song has many strong moments (such as the return of the "Ghost of Perdition" line late in the song) and great diversity, I do not find it comparable in terms of sheer intensity of affects and emotions to their most haunting earlier offerings, in particular not as compared to the magnificent "Still Life". One of the main reasons for this may be the comparatively slow riffs and melody lines over mid-paced drumming (e.g. the passage after the five minutes mark on "Ghost of Perdition", the one around the six minutes mark in "Baying of the Hounds" and the one around the one minute mark in "Beneath the Mire"), which I do not find very exciting. "Beneath the Mire" is perhaps the most diverse song here, before "Atonement" showcases the band on an unexpected ? but welcome ? psychedelic note. On the second side of the album I would recommend in particular the calmer and shorter songs, in particular the introvert "Hours of Wealth". All in all, this is a rewarding listen, but certainly not among those Opeth records that I hold in highest regard.