To me the fascinating thing about Opeth is that, against all odds, each one of their albums exist on the same scale. Each entry in their discography informs the next in one way or another. This makes them a truly progressive act even long before they gave themselves whole-heartedly over to the prog rock mindset. The moody death metal of their first three albums softened to deliver us the critically-acclaimed combo of Still Life and Blackwater Park. From here the band were spun in a centrifuge, separating out the heaviest and lightest elements as two separate albums, Deliverance and Damnation. Ghost Reveries mixed the two halves back together to play to their strengths, while Watershed intentionally jumbled them in ill-fitting combinations. Heritage retained that in-built sense of eccentricity while jettisoning most of the metal sound. Which brings us Pale Communion, a record that picks up where the divisive Heritage left off. Can these revered gentlemen hammer out some of the bugs and produce a stronger more consistent album, or are their non-metal excursions doomed from the get go?
One of the major criticisms leveled at
Heritage was its inconsistency. As much as I enjoyed the album
I actually have to agree with that diagnosis. Many of the movements,
passages, and contained ideas therein were genuinely exciting to
behold but their arrangement left a lot to be desired. Multiple spins
revealed it to be more of a loose collection of concepts than a
coherent record. It is for this reason that, on paper at least,
Pale Communion is undeniably superior. The
album is yet another love letter to the band’s heroes.
Occult hard rock rubs shoulders with spaced out psychedelia, folk,
and sheer Scandanavian oddness. Nowhere is this description more apt
than ‘Goblin’, a track quite literally named in honour of their
forebears. The song is a tribute to the legendary Italian band of the
same name and it apes their style well while still retaining a
confident sense of self. After all, this isn’t some lousy tribute
band we’re talking about here. Opeth are a vital creative force.
With less and less focus on the
heaviness of heavy metal – the guttural vocals, the commanding
riffs, the pummeling blast beats – the greater the focus has become
on Mikael Akerfeldt’s voice as an instrument. Luckily he is more
than up to the task. I shudder to think how some of Opeth’s
contemporaries might have handled the transition to this clean
singing philosophy and the train-wrecks it could produce in less
capable hands. Akerfeldt has always had an amazing singing voice and
he seems to be relishing using it full-time. Every track on this album (with the exception of the instrumental 'Goblin') owes his a debt of gratitude for what he brings to them. On 'Elysian Woes' he is
even able to make a line like the central refrain of “don't want to bear
my scars for you” sound genuinely moving instead of the uncut
cheese it looks like on paper.
Don't for a minute think that Opeth has
become a one-man show. While admittedly Akerfeldt seems to be in the
driver's seat in 2014, his fellow band mates are more than up to the
task. Joining old hands Martin Mendez (bass), Martin Axenrot (drums),
and Fredrick Akesson (guitar), is new-comer Joakim Svalberg on keys,
replacing long-time ivory tickler Per Wiberg. Rounding out the
line-up, prog overlord Steven Wilson is again on hand to produce the
record. This particular incarnation of Opeth tackles the difficult
material with aplomb. It requires a particularly adept cast of
players to tackle multi-part epics like 'Moon Above, Sun Below' or
the heartbreaking finale 'Faith in Others'.
Just because Opeth have embraced their
turn to prog rock doesn't mean that everything has gone soft on you.
Just take 'Cusp of Eternity' for example. It actually acts as the
album's single, possibly for the very first time in the band's
history. Sure, they've had other songs released to the public but
none of them really sounded as though they belonged on a radio
station before. Until now that is. Not only that but it is a kick-ass
jam of a rock song to boot. On 'Cusp of Eternity' they channel all of
their 70s/80s rock fantasies into a concise and energetic five and a
half minutes of gorgeous riffing topped off with another powerhouse
vocal performance.
In truth Pale Communion uses all
of the same tricks that Heritage did. What becomes very
apparent over even just the first few tracks is that Opeth have
simply learned better ways to wield their arsenal over the past few
years. You’ll still find the same rolling keyboard vamps, strange
harmonies, esoteric solos, acoustic passages, and other gags from
prog’s deep bag of tricks that the band have been toying around
with for a while now – only this time they have all found a way to
serve the songs rather than confound them. The duo of Watershed
and Heritage heralded the end of Opeth as a metal band. Pale
Communion represents a new beginning as a different beast
altogether. If you're one of those fans who hates the new direction
they are going in my advice to you is to pull your head in: that boat
sailed a long time ago. If you are too stuck in the past you risk
missing out on the promises of a bright (and undoubtedly proggy)
future.
Rating: A
Recommended tracks: Moon Above Sun
Below, Cusp of Eternity, Elysian Woes
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