MORNINGRISE

The monstrous OPETH sound is prominent on this, their second album. Five ten-minute-plus tracks, each with distinctiveness and creativity well beyond the run-of-the-mill melodic death metal genre. Witness the bent bass of the opening track, the combination of riff-laden passages and acoustic interludes, this time interwoven with far more skill than on their debut, the more powerful singing in both growls and 'clean' vocals. This is a tighter, more focused outfit, building on the successes of their debut without significantly modifying the formula.

They still had a long way to go, however. The riffs would become heavier still in future albums, the acoustic breaks more melodious and central to the songs; and, most importantly, OPETH would integrate more and more progressive tendencies in their music. Nevertheless, 'Advent', 'The Night and Silent Water' and parts of the patchy epic 'Black Rose Immortal' (the only time OPETH overreach their abilities) are excellent. The wonderful 'To Bid You Farewell' shows how sophisticated OPETH were already becoming.

With this album OPETH set about redefining a genre. The fact that they have largely succeeded is a tribute to their creativity and hard work. This is one of the essential albums of the prog-metal genre... yet there is so much better yet to come.