Mumblefood said:
I don't really think so... They were hardly a blip on the radar until BWP's release, and from there it seems to have taken off nearly exponentially with each release. I first heard Opeth around the release of Still Life (which i guess supports your point in a way...), but for a couple years until the release of BWP there was still next to no one to talk to about them (including on the internet). From BWP on, it seemed like they just grew. It's funny to think i used to get so monumentally excited to find another Opeth fan, when now, people who don't even listen to metal have heard the name.
I completely agree with your point, all I am saying is that the progression started earlier. I noticed a huge increase in popularity at the time SL was released (although yes, there were still not loads of people locally to talk to about them, there were some for the first time, other than those I had introduced to the band, or had played gigs with the band). This was in no small part down to the shift from Candlelight (Lee did a fantastic job) to Peaceville and the increased exposure that brought.
The same thing has happened with each release and label change since.
I suppose some of what I am saying may be less clear to people in the US, as the release dates and labels differed. To understand my point from my perspective (I have not looked into when each album was licensed elsewhere in the world, or if there was another license apart from Koch), the albums were released as below:
Ochid (1995, Candlelight)
Morningrise (1996, Candlelight)
MAYH (1998, Candlelight)
SL (1999, Peaceville)
BWP (2001, MFN)
D1 (2002, MFN)
D2 (2003, MFN)
GR (2005, RR)
The increase in profile was mainly with each label change, I suppose with the exception of Damnation (for obvious reasons).
Still Life was the first album that I was able to buy locally and in person on the day of release, the others had to be ordered from Underground Mail Order places prior to that.
I am just glad that Lee signed them and started the process going... With the output, promise and potential of the band, none of us can predict where they will end up. I cannot understand those people that begrudge them the success they (to me) so clearly deserve and have earned.