Best production on an Opeth record

It's not their cleanest record but i would also have to say BWP. The guitar tone on that record never fails to amaze me. I especially love that middle pickup sound like on the intro lead in Dirge for November...the bit where the chord change kicks in.

As far as Damnation goes i can see why it would be deemed as having the best production, but I also think Ghost Reveries has a certain clarity that spaces out each instument... not to mention the fact that keyboards are on there for the first time, and they are both subtle and prominent.

Bow down to the almighty Opeth...I would have Mike to produce my bands future work for sure...he has a great ear for producing.
 
I think Damnation is their best sounding record by far, but as far as the other albums... Blackwater Park is my favorite. Orchid and Morningrise are weak and sterile, MAYH is muddy as hell, Still Life is pretty good but could use some more clarity.. BWP is very clear and pretty good sounding, although it isn't perfect. Deliverance is way too polished, and Ghost Reveries even more so.
 
damnation - delicious clean electrics...the harmonics shine through beautifully..great separation between instruments...warm vocals...dry, but full drums, and very dynamic (not so compressed, which is possible when they are not in the midst of distorted guitars)...warm and audible bass...

GR - thick, clear, deep...i'd say this albums covers the broadest frequency range of any album...the extreme lows from the bass drum...the bass has nice upper mids that stand out well, probably the best since morningrise...the guitars are the thickest since mayh, and the clearest since still life...the clean electrics nice, but to me, every clean electric sound is shit compared to damnation...the acoustic guitars are kind of thin sounding, but have a nice sparkle, they sound real...to me, the vocals are a bit over-powering on this album, its nice to showcase mike's amazing growl, but i like when they are "in the mix" a bit more, they seem to stand out a bit too much....the drums are fucking sweet, the cymbals sound very thick and bassy, yet the perfect crispness.

Deliverance - sterile, cold, thin, sinister...i popped this album in the other night and absolutely loved it...the guitars sound kind of choked, thin, and harsh. though, the notes still come through...this album has my favorite lead tone...the sound of the guitar comes through well, that signature "O" sound that comes from mike's guitar. the drums sound machine-like, which they are. they are always separated from the other instruments...the bass, booooooo, it sounds more like an "fill-in-the-missing-lows" attachment to the guitars...mike's vocals are fucking brutal on this album, his distorted cackle is up front, while his chest is in the back...his cleans are very smooth, and haunting, they seem a bit "touched up".

my god, i'm too lazy to go any further...so here..

favorite distorted guitars - still life
favorite leads - Deliverance
favorite clean guitars - damnation
favorite clean vocals - damnation
favorite drums - GR
favorite bass - GR

favorite overall vibe...hmmm, i like them for difference reasons relative to the album...but, i'd say the best would have to be GR.
 
I think MAYH's production complements the music very well, it's very cold feeling and makes the drumming sound more brutal. Overall maybe Damnation has the best production though.
 
Still Life easily. Blackwater Park is great too. Morningrise's production fits the music perfect but I definitely can't call it the best.

EDIT: Wow, I'm surprised no one has said Still Life yet. Everything is so full in that album. It's just great.
 
naboo said:
Still Life easily. Blackwater Park is great too. Morningrise's production fits the music perfect but I definitely can't call it the best.

EDIT: Wow, I'm surprised no one has said Still Life yet. Everything is so full in that album. It's just great.
Click to expand...

I was thinking of Still life but i changed my mind the last second. :erk:
 
GR or Damnation. Easily. On Damnation, everything was in it's own soundscape. On GR, everything is clear, although the keys I agree should be up a little more
 
I wouldn't say Still Life. I think musically, yeah, it's their greatest. The production is adequate and suited to the music, but it's not as clean or large as the subsequent albums.

Damnation has this hugeness about it that none of their other releases have. Everything sounds like its right in front of your face, yet miles away because of the verb they used. As an engineer, I can't even fathom how you'd go about creating a sound like that. That snare though... if you watch a spectrum analyzer whilst a track like windowpane is going, when that snare gets hit, the entire damn spectrum jumps up. It's almost like white noise. I think they mixed in slightly too much bottom mic.

Blackwater Park is just way overcompressed. The elements aren't cut well, so they clash with each other and give you pumping everywhere. The midrange is way too busy on this record and tends to produce ear fatigue upon prolonged listens.

In terms of their heavier releases, Ghost Reveries is a clear winner from a technical standpoint. The guitars aren't obnoxious, yet friggin loud, the drums cut perfectly yet they don't sound triggered, Mikes vocals are almost like a pop record (keep in mind pop is pretty much the aphex of engineering. it's where an engineer pretty much CREATES the music, since the artists themselves generally aren't talented enough to do it), the bass is up-front considering it's a metal record etc. etc.
 
Moonlapse said:
I wouldn't say Still Life. I think musically, yeah, it's their greatest. The production is adequate and suited to the music, but it's not as clean or large as the subsequent albums.

-to me, still life is really "glassy," especially the acoustic, clean electric, and vocals...and the bass is way too lose. but, i think it is a very majestic and warm sounding record. one thing that bothers me about that album is how much fucking reverb is on mike's voice in benighted...it kept me from liking that song for a while...and when he performed it on the damnation tour, i liked it way more.

Damnation has this hugeness about it that none of their other releases have. Everything sounds like its right in front of your face, yet miles away because of the verb they used. As an engineer, I can't even fathom how you'd go about creating a sound like that. That snare though... if you watch a spectrum analyzer whilst a track like windowpane is going, when that snare gets hit, the entire damn spectrum jumps up. It's almost like white noise. I think they mixed in slightly too much bottom mic.

-the snare is pretty loud sometimes, but its also nice and quite at times. lopez does awesome little dynamicly loaded rolling snare fills, and those are accented well on this album.

Blackwater Park is just way overcompressed. The elements aren't cut well, so they clash with each other and give you pumping everywhere. The midrange is way too busy on this record and tends to produce ear fatigue upon prolonged listens.

-i agree about the overcompressed thing...certain parts don't have enough umph, and likewise...but, out of all the albums, this album contains the deepest, most beautiful acoustic guitar sound...its very rich...to me, this is to acoustic guitars what damnation is to clean electrics. the bass stands out well on this album too. the guitars' distortion is somewhat screeching and doesn't have quite the low-mid punch...which allows the bass to come through well, and the upper-end blends in with the cymbals to make a nice and thick sound up there...but, what i really like about the guitars on this album, that opeth has had since mayh, is the very dark and rich guitar tone...the distortion may screech, but the voicing of the guitars still stands through...its especially noticeable on the drapery falls...the notes of the chords stand out well as there is a nice separation between the distortion and the voice of the guitar.
Click to expand...
 
I personally preffer the rhythm guitar sound of Ghost Reveries. It just seems more sanitised... less obtrusive and not quite so painful. Blackwater Park is a bit midrange overkill to me, sort of like Still Life is too. I think it's amazing the individual guitar parts even stand out from all those mids, but I do preffer more clean-cut sounds like those on GR.
 
Moonlapse said:
I personally preffer the rhythm guitar sound of Ghost Reveries. It just seems more sanitised... less obtrusive and not quite so painful. Blackwater Park is a bit midrange overkill to me, sort of like Still Life is too. I think it's amazing the individual guitar parts even stand out from all those mids, but I do preffer more clean-cut sounds like those on GR.
Click to expand...


i can see how you like the rhythm guitars on GR...it reminds me a lot of the tone i have heard from your recordings, and mixes.
 
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