Opeth: every album every song

by Jordan Blum

There has never been – and never will be – another band like Opeth. Formed in Stockholm, Sweden circa 1989, their roughly thirty-year career showcases a melding of diverse influences; a prevailing commitment to songwriting and instrumental excellence; and unwaveringly chameleonic vision – no matter the cost – that’s unmatched by any of their stylistic peers. Be it their most unashamedly brutal early LPs, their multifaceted and near-faultless mid-period opuses, or their somewhat polarizing recent glimpses into macabre 1970s-esque prog/jazz rock eccentricity, mastermind Mikael Åkerfeldt and company continuously create records that push themselves, their audience, and progressive music as a whole, forward. The result is easily among the most extraordinary, dependable, and laudable legacies in modern metal. Using a meticulously crafted mixture of original analysis and behind-the-scenes research, this book digs into all facets of Opeth’s output to discover how they innovated and evolved with practically every release. After all, each ‘observation’ – from their 1990s black metal classics (Morningrise and My Arms, Your Hearse) and 2000s progressive death metal masterpieces (Blackwater Park and Ghost Reveries) to their stunning progressive rock/jazz fusion excursions of the 2010s (Pale Communion and In Cauda Venenum) – found Opeth ceaselessly harvesting a one-of-a-kind catalogue that’s still remarkably influential and impressive.

Genres: Music

160 pages, Paperback

Published April 29, 2022

Reviews

[Tyler Roland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pros: decent info on the band
Cons: a shit-ton of adverbs and ‘big words,’ a few of which are close to necessary. Reading gets very fatiguing and the book drifts into “14-year-old stan with a thesaurus” territory too much for a higher rating