Damnation

Beth said:
Good point. But no, I don't think I'm praising it too much....yeah, we're biased, big deal :D

Now that I have time and I'm bored, I'd like to elaborate.....you did make a very valid point, and I'm sure that what you are questioning is in fact the case for some of the people who love Damnation--I'm sure some love it only because they know it is Opeth. But I don't think that's the case in my situation. I really do love it.

It's kind of like Katatonia with me. I just started listening to them a couple months ago, and LFDGD was my first album. Now would that album be classified as metal? Maybe, but it's not pure metal. But it is obvious that the band may in fact be classified as a metal band or that they are at least influenced by metal. LFDGD is all clean vocals, like Damnation, but I know it's still somewhat metal, but I love the songs purely for what they are, and nothing else......That said, if I hadn't listened to Opeth before, I would at least KNOW what type of metal they are (great mix of heaviness and mellowness/melody) before checking it out. I read. I would buy Damnation as my first album, all the while keeping in mind that they are a metal band that likes to showcase its wide array of talents. And I would be impressed by Damnation, thus making me even more anxious to hear their other albums that have the "typical" mixture of heaviness/melody. And I would love all of it too (duh).

So yeah, I'd like Damnation and be even MORE interested in old Opeth if Damnation were my first album....Does this make sense? :)
 
dolphz said:
If this cd was relased by some obscure band, not many people would give it a second listen, and DEFINATELY no one would be posting on this or any other board how "great" this cd is.
....

I would. I think it's badass, musicianship, production, vocals, song structure...you name it. Quality stuff, on top of which, it's an Opeth record, an extra album that they decided to do at the same time while they did a "normal" Opeth album.

Windowpane kills. It screams "Get the Fuck outta my face" to every other band in the world. The middle parts and the guitar solos....:hotjump:whew!


Opeth don't care what we think, which makes Damnation even better...they did it cause they wanted to do it, not too impress us or divide us, but just cause they felt like it.
 
Demonspell said:
Ending Credits is closer to Snow Goose-era Camel than Santana IMO...

i just listened to snow goose for the first time today (on vinyl :D) and i have to agree... well, it's commonly known that there's quite a lot of camel in opeth's sound :)
 
Beth said:
Now that I have time and I'm bored, I'd like to elaborate.....you did make a very valid point, and I'm sure that what you are questioning is in fact the case for some of the people who love Damnation--I'm sure some love it only because they know it is Opeth. But I don't think that's the case in my situation. I really do love it.

It's kind of like Katatonia with me. I just started listening to them a couple months ago, and LFDGD was my first album. Now would that album be classified as metal? Maybe, but it's not pure metal. But it is obvious that the band may in fact be classified as a metal band or that they are at least influenced by metal. LFDGD is all clean vocals, like Damnation, but I know it's still somewhat metal, but I love the songs purely for what they are, and nothing else......That said, if I hadn't listened to Opeth before, I would at least KNOW what type of metal they are (great mix of heaviness and mellowness/melody) before checking it out. I read. I would buy Damnation as my first album, all the while keeping in mind that they are a metal band that likes to showcase its wide array of talents. And I would be impressed by Damnation, thus making me even more anxious to hear their other albums that have the "typical" mixture of heaviness/melody. And I would love all of it too (duh).

So yeah, I'd like Damnation and be even MORE interested in old Opeth if Damnation were my first album....Does this make sense? :)

That said, if I hadn't listened to Opeth before, I would at least KNOW what type of metal they are (great mix of heaviness and mellowness/melody) before checking it out. I read.

I'm trying to get across the point that YOU HADN'T HEARD/ABOUT Opeth before listening to D2. The purpose of my argument is to treat Damnation as a STAND ALONE effort, and then judge the album upon it's OWN merits.

Secondly, D2 is significatly further removed from the metal genre (as a stand alone title) than LFDGD is...... (D2 is Essentially, or at least closest to Prog Rock).

I think something I said in my previous argument seems to have been misinterpreted.......

IF we were to consider D2 on it's own merits, it would probably be considered as an above par prog rock album, but not much more......HOWEVER, as (Obviously) D2 is not a one off effort by some obscure band, Opeths previous efforts must also be take into consideration (as for the majority of D2 listeners, it won't be their first Opeth experience)

Now the IMPORTANT part I was trying to get at before is that I was NOT saying that simply because OPETH = GOOD therefore D2 = GOOD as well, but that relating aspects of D2 back to aspects of the previous albums you can begin to appreciate the album in a much better light.

I guess to simplify, what I'm trying to say is that it's not the OPETH NAME that is lifting this album from mediocre to stellar, but the PREVIOUS OPETH ALBUMS (and their relevance as it pertains to D2), which is doing all the leg-work.

Anyway, that's enough rambling from me for one day! :D

Spike
 
All that said though, ony my 'few' listening though this album so far (hey, a dozen IS a few listens when it's an Opeth album! :p ) 'Ending Credits' definitley stands as a brilliant song on it's own merits/two feet! :D

That songs scares the SHIT out of me! :eek: (Though it's kinda hard to explain why.. :oops: )
 
Okay, I'm still not clear on when Damnation is released in Canada... you'd think it would be the same release date as in the U.S... but I've been hearing May 12. *shrug* ...Jesus Christ, guess I'm gonna have to go down on payday and scavenge for it. Should be fun. I've downloaded it though 'cause I couldn't wait and it's a wicked album. Not my favorite, just because of the short play-time (43:44?), but the quality of each song measures up to that of any other album... I like them all equally 'cause they're just so different. Except for Orchid, which is just kinda monotonous and directionless... but it's still good.
 
"Except for Orchid, which is just kinda monotonous and directionless... but it's still good."

:lol: :lol: :mad: :lol:

Hey Spike - I see what you're getting at. D2 just seems greater to a majority because we know their past. You ask us to separate it from that and reconsider. I thought of Katatonia too.

Alone this album would give me the impression their music is usually hauntingly mellow. Five years ago I might not have looked much further. I've learned you don't do that unless a year down the road you don't mind kicking yourself in the ass for such a hasty decision.

The strange directions, the odd time sigs that Opeth use... that's what would have caught my attention now. It's usually promising. There's always those things that make we weak in the knees like Mike's vox and that "rich/fat guitar" sound they have. 4:30-5:45 in Windowpane = rich.
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And the basslines on this album! I like them!
 
Risedfromthedead said:
I dont like it yet... I miss the BWP haunted feeling... this sounds like Santana at its moments.

But Ill guess that it will grow on me as all other albums have for me!

That's what I was thinking, I don't remember which song it was, but I was thinking, this could be Santana.
 
Damnation is the best fucking Opeth yet!!I'm so blown away by this album emotionally!I've never heard an album like and they feeling it gives me and i don't think i ever will.The new Opeth and Cradle of filth albums are my picks for albums of the year!!!Opeth are pure genius and i think Damnation and past efforts are proof of this.
 
Nothing drops Morningrise a spot.

If you ask me, i expected a totally diffrent thing from Damnation...
When i heard it was all about acoustic guitars and the mellow part of Opeth - I expected the songs to be more epic and magical - the same as the acoustic parts within Opeth's early albums.

I'm not saying I dislike Damnation - i'm just saying its not what i expected.
 
Spod2508 said:
Dunno what to make of it.......so far, I haven't found anything that really catches and makes me pay attention but hopefully, as many of you have pointed out, it'll grow on me.

I too miss the BWP feeling and for some reason, when I heard this album was coming out, I expected it to be all acoustic and was really looking forward to hearing more stuff like Still Day.., Harvest and Patterns In The Ivy I & II. Maybe that's why I can't get into it, because I was expecting something different.

Anyhoo, here's hoping that after a few more listens it'll make it's way up my favourites list

Damn, those are my thoughts exactly! Gonna keep on spinning the hell out of the disc though. I'll eventually digest the whole album
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