Opeth - My Arms, Your Hearse
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Free Music Notes for My Arms, Your Hearse
Free Music Review: Excellent album, and in time will surpass even Blackwater Park's greatness.
Hit: 5 Stars
Well, there isn't much else to say as the title pretty much says it all. The album just plain rocks. You MIGHT not like it at first (I didn't at first) but later on it will grow on you and you will LOVE it. The part that really sets this Opeth album out from the others is the production. The production isn't as clean as other Opeth albums are which actually helps make this album sound a lot better. My favorites off of this album include Circle Of Tyrants (I never checked out Celtic Frost yet but this song sounds so good I think I'm gonna have to now, the pianos and guitar rhythms are AMAZING AND BEAUTIFUL), Demon Of The Fall (for the vocals in the beggining), and The Amen Corner being my favorite for being the heaviest song off of the album. The Amen Corner pretty much does NOT let go of you until the very end of the song where it goes accoustic as to give a good intro for Demon Of The Fall. The mardigal instrumental before The Amen Corner helps make the song so good. As for other songs off the album, Credence is a very soft accoustic and drumming song with an ok rhythm, easily my least favorite but still good. April Etheral is a mix of death metal and accoustic like all of Opeth's usual songs are like and it's pretty good. Sets up the album nicely for what's to come (along with the the prologue which is just rain followed by a few piano notes). When is more accoustic than death metal, not to mention the longest off the album. It's great and the ending is great to (the vocals are the REAL highlight off this song like it is on most Opeth songs, Mikhael is a really talented vocalist). Karma is a good song also, the ending growls is pretty good. Nothing much else really to say except the lyrics off Karma are really bad but the musicianship makes up for it. Last but not least to be explained, the Remember Tommorow cover song from iron maiden. One word can be used to describe it, AMAZING. The guitars SHRED on this song and Opeth have officially outbeat the best song off of Iron Maiden's self titled CD. That says something since Iron Maiden is one of the best metal bands on the planet.
Alright I guess there was a lot more to say than just the title. I coundn't have letted y'all just buy the album without knowing what your going to get. If you go on Opeth's My Space last I checked Demon Of The Fall is on their Space. Demon Of The Fall is one of their more famous songs due to the very demon like vocals. Very great. And with that I conclude this review with recommendations to buy this album. You might be disapointed in the beggining (espicially if your a new metalhead) but in the end the album will be well worth it. Trust me as I've had this album for a year now.
Free Music Review: Not so much "music", as it is an evocation of mood and image
Hit: 5 Stars
This was my first Opeth purchase, and utterly shattered whatever pre-conceived notions I had of what "music" was.
Before I found this band, I was fed on radio rock and late night mtv which provided as extreme a avenue for heavy music as you could get without actually playing a solo or using more than 2 different types of song structure (read: evanescence/linkin park).
On hearing the praise bestowed on this band by frequenters of a forum I visited, I decided to download and check out some of their tracks.
Demon of the Fall was one the first tracks I heard from Opeth, and it was like an epiphany.
Unlike most others, this reviewer didn't get turned off at all by the vocal style. Rather, what captured my attention was the unrelenting, uncompromising way these guys played. To someone who had up till then never been exposed to black/death metal, this was like something I'd be searching for all along. I knew squat about anything non-mainstream then, and Opeth just happened to be my "gateway" band to metal, its sub-genres and all kinds of things musical that don't get air time on commerical radio.
Rather than lavishing endless praise on this band and coming off as something of a fanboy(I prolly already seems like it), I just want to briefly describe this complete new-comer's reaction to their kind of music, and in particular this album.
It is dense. It cares nothing for licks or choruses or catchy riffs/segments. If you were to close off all other sensory distractions, you could visualise the lush imagery and moods it conjures up, exactly what depending on the listener. Opeth is not something you pop in the stereo at a party for a good time with friends. It's something you sit alone in your room with, after closing the door, and REALLY fully immerse yourself into.
Again, they're by no means the only band that does this to me, but they were the first. If you have never heard of death metal, or if prior samples of it have sounded repugnant to you, I suggest you try out this band and/or this album. In a good way, this band and other quality death metal bands expose the rawer, darker sides of the emotional spectrum, and are just as good as other genres of music that typically sound upbeat.
(product info): This bonus tracks cd comes with Opeth covers of tracks by Celtic Frost. They're pretty average compared to the rest of the album and I'd only recommend them for the collector.
Free Music Review: A typically classy album from an amazingly consistent band.
Hit: 5 Stars
This is where I really feel Opeth took things to another level. I have much admiration for the two prior releases ("Orchid" and "Morningrise"), yet I always felt that for all the brilliant musicianship and creativity, they lacked a bit of cohesion, not to mention distinguishable tracks. Each track would contain several totally separate sections, all brilliant, but not really relating to each other to give the listener something to hold onto. I found "Morningrise" to be the bigger offender, with 5 epic tracks of over 10 minutes in length, and no common theme tying any of them together. As much as I enjoy listening to that album, I find myself struggling to focus on it for its whole running time.
"My Arms Your Hearse" on the other hand, saw the band for the first time shortening the track lengths and sticking to more conservative song structures. They still managed to include the acoustic interludes and a variety of riffs and leads in every track, yet each one manages to hold its own identity due to a common theme and mood. A track such as "Demon of the Fall" is a perfect example of this change. It's certainly one of the most crushing songs Opeth have ever recorded. The vocals are brutal to say the least and some of those riffs are just exquisitely dark. Rather than break the track up on tangents of bridges and interludes and drawing it out unnecessarily as I feel they had at times in the past, they opted to run with the theme and mood throughout. They then utilized tracks like "Credence", which is an awesome acoustic ballad, to explore their tender and less metallic side.
For me, it's this restraint and focus that makes "My Arms Your Hearse" such a great listen and a step in the right direction. It's one of their most consistently heavy albums along with "Deliverance" and has some classic tracks such as "April Ethereal", "Demon of the Fall" and "Karma". A couple of tracks lose a bit of momentum such as "The Amen Corner" which starts off in style but can't quite follow through, but there is no filler material whatsoever. There are not many fans that list this album as their favourite and I'm not going to make that call either, but it's a typically classy release from an amazingly consistent band.
Free Music Review: Flawless - a great band's greatest album
Hit: 5 Stars
Very seldom does a metal band come along that can truly mesh mind-blowing beauty with visceral power. Opeth has long been known for their ability to walk this line with probably more grace than any other band ever, and on My Arms Your Hearse their craft is at its peak. Their grooving rhythm style is in force here, but retains some of the more aggressive rhythms of their two earlier efforts, a balance best seen on the chorus of Demon of the Fall. The result is a very hard-driving section that arouses harder headbanging than most future Opeth works. They would also never quite be as beautiful during their heavy groove sections. April Ethereal is quite possibly my favorite song of all time now due to the balance struck between that pounding brutality and awe-inspiring, majestic beauty. Later Opeth efforts tend to polarize the songs, with a monster-headbanging-heavy part followed by a stunning acoustic part. While these are also great albums, there's something special in MAYH's balance - it seems more sublime than Deliverance or even Blackwater Park.
This is the first effort by the current Opeth lineup. Bassist Johan DeFarfalla and drummer Anders Nordin had recently moved on and been replaced by the Martins - Mendez (bass) and Lopez (drums), both of whom bring entirely new feels to the rhythm section. Mikael Akerfeldt's clean voice has not matured to the fullest but is still incredibly beautiful, and his growls are as forceful as ever. Guitarists Peter Lindgren and Akerfeldt together master incredibly complex and dense harmony passages that are far more technically difficult than they sound. While their style may put off fans of pure technical flash, more thoughtful listeners will appreciate their depth and power, and may ultimately be touched in a way that few (if any) other bands can top.
There's something here for any fan of rock music. Absolutely perfect. Recommended tracks: April Ethereal (best song ever), Demon of the Fall, Credence.
Free Music Review: Serenity
Hit: 5 Stars
This is Opeth's third album and the first that featured Martin Lopez on the drums. I can see why many people feel that this is Opeth's best album, but I am not going to say that. This is because I do not think that it is fair to say this because all of Opeth's albums are unique and magnificent in their own right. This band is just TOO good and all of their albums as well.
Anyway, back to the album. You probably already know that this is a concept album and the story behind it but if you don't here it is: A man has died and is now walking the earth as a ghost. He still has not realized that he is indeed dead though. As a ghost, he sees his loved ones, his surroudings, and life going on basically, which leads me to say that the lyrics on this album are incredible. This album is one of the heavier albums Opeth has released but it also has the patented Opeth soft passages, melodies, and clean vocals we all know and love. MAYH does not feature as many guitar solos compared to other Opeth albums but the musicianship is still brilliant as with their other albums as you would expect. I think on this album, Mikael Akerfeldt's vocals (especially his clean vocals) had matured a great deal from their previous two albums, and his growls were also a little bit deeper on this album. To prove my point about the clean vocals, you just need to hear the song "Credence" on this album, as I feel it is the most beautiful soft song Opeth has ever released (Damnation album included). The production, while not fantastic, is still good and I think it adds to the album overall in relation to the theme of the album.
In summary, this album should be in your collection if you are a fan of music, let alone metal. This album has it all the necessary elements to constitute a masterpiece.