Opeth - Deliverance
Music For Nations

Evil Dr. Smith: Oh my God, they are back. Would you believe it? The sixth masterpiece in a row. Right from the start in 1994 with ‘Orchid’ up until ‘Black Water Park’ which was released next year it was nothing but the purest quality these guys set free upon society, and things have not changed with this new album either, no Sir! Really, I mean, everything they touch turns into gold! And what other Metal band on the face of the planet can boast about the same thing: releasing six albums that are all legendary good.

Metallica? No, of course not. They threw in the towel after only three albums (or, depending on your personal flavour, after four after albums, with a maximum of five).

Black Sabbath? Almost right, but their 6th (‘Sabotage’) was kind of weak.

Slayer, maybe…? Nope, after four CDs they suffered a collapse, and isn’t it a fact that almost everybody is still hoping for ‘Reign In Blood Vol.2’?

Led Zeppelin? Nah, after album number five – ‘Houses Of The Holy’- it became less and less.

Okay, the other dinosaur then: Deep Purple? Wrong again, because before ‘In Rock’ they started out with nice, but surely no legendary albums. The same goes for Thin Lizzy.

Kiss? Come one, stop arsing about!

AC/DC? Well, that debut album (‘High Voltage’) wasn’t really all it was cranked up to be.

Emperor? Never got any further than four official albums… And the same goes for a God like Jimi Hendrix and freaks like Kyuss: also only four official albums.

Savatage perhaps? Gee, to bad they ever released ‘Fight For The Rock’.

Morbid Angel? Absolutely fantastic, but be honest with me…do you really think that ‘Formulas Fatal…’ is that genius?

Maybe Judas Priest? Hahaha, listen to ‘Rocka Rolla’ and shiver…

How about that favourite band of mine then: Tool? Mmm, their counter is still on three full-length CDs.

Okay! Iron Maiden! Nope, not even them, for their sixth album ‘Somewhere In Time’ isn’t widely regarded as a masterpiece (and according to a lot of people their second one ‘Killers’ wasn’t also).

So, it doesn’t really matter which name you come up with: Dream Theater, Testament, Bal-Sagoth, Motörhead, Uriah Heep, Enslaved, Cannibal Corpse (yeah, right!), Rush, Anthrax, Enslaved, Voivod, Queensryche, In Flames, Pantera, Megadeth, Hypocrisy or whatever heavy band, there’s always a weak album hidden somewhere in the row of the first six. So what is the point of all this smart-ass name-dropping? I dare to say there hasn’t been one single band on this godforsaken planet that ever put out six real classic albums in a row. Except for…

OPETH!!! The evidence is called “Deliverance” and contains only five tunes and an acoustic intermezzo. But the hour of music it represents is at the same frightening high level as that of ‘Blackwater Park’. “Deliverance” has become rather heavier than its predecessor (which is cool in itself, especially because of those mighty grunts from Mikael Åkerfelt), but that was the big intention this time. The original idea was to release two albums at once, one heavy album and one mellow album. That mellow one, entitled ‘Damnation’, probably houses more tracks like the bonus tracks on the re-issue of ‘Blackwater Park’, but alas we have to wait another six months for that one. Music For Nations didn’t think it was wise to release two albums from one band at the same time (yeah, right! and thank you very much, not!).

But maybe MFN is right after all, for it takes a lot of time again to really get into the songs. Their trademark: ‘roaring symphonic Death Metal eruptions with acoustic guitar intermezzos and crystal clear sung passages in songs lasting about 10 minutes each’, is again displayed in the best possible way. The only thing which one can nag about is that Opeth does a pretty hard to define style of Metal, a path from which they won’t stray. The only things that changed are production, arrangement and the way they play, which in last few years are thus fine-tuned that since ‘Blackwater Park’ the band is at its absolute best. And that is the only thing not so well on the new CD compared to ‘Blackwater Park’: It is not better, simply because that is impossible. That album was so ‘complete’ that a follow-up only could be of lesser impact and quality. ‘Deliverance’ simply won’t yield for that matter. The first few spins I thought the songs where enchantingly good, but not as classic and impressing as the songs on ‘Blackwater Park’ were. But….I was just too impatient, because after the 5th spin it started coming: Goosebumps! They are back! Right now, on deadline night, I have played it about eight times and the intensity is on such a high level I still seem unable to point out any highlights. Which basically means that I am still focussed as hell and still not breathing…Oh yeah, one highlight: The last three minutes of the title-track, in which Martin Lopez plays a real catchy drum-fill. But every time I try to clap along I fuck up. Damn, this stuff is more complex than I thought (or does it merely prove I do not have natural rhythm?).

Furthermore, I can tell you that the production again was in the capable hands of Porcupine Tree’s frontman Steven Wilson, who is also (every now and then) doing some background vocals, guitars and Mellotron. Also noticeable: singer/guitarist Mikael wrote all the words and music. But let’s stop wasting everybody’s time with useless details about something that only comes to full glory when you actually play it. This is a majestic, melancholic monster-trip on the wings of the ‘masters of massive misty moodmetal’. And to finish I would like to advise you:

BUY OR DIE! BUY OR DIE! BUY OR DIE! BUY OR DIE! BUY OR DIE!

PS:

What is that you say? Death? …Eh…damn…that is a good one. You are absolutely right. Seven in a row, all classics. So much for Opeth’s genius when it comes to quantity. But the new Opeth is scheduled for a March 2003 release. Then we get even with Chuck.

Evil Dr. Smith diagnoses: 100/100

http://www.opeth.com

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