Death Vocals on morningrise are weaker IMO

Ummm... it's definately different, the higher rasp as opposed to the atomic-blast lower growl he does now.

I think it was "weaker" in that it didn't sound as thick or as strong as the death vocals he's done since, but it was going for a different style.

I like the newer ones better - and, also, the vocals he does for Bloodbath, they're pretty damn amazing. They sound like they have this forceful sort of wind behind them... IS that in the production? Or...
 
Even though I like Opeth alot. The vocal style on Morningrise is what turned me onto the band.
It almost had a black metal sound to it. I prefer higher/midrange growl vocals in general ofcourse he performs his current style pretty well.

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The words 'VOCALS' and 'WEAK' in the same sentence? :rolleyes: I strongly disagree here...we are talking about Mikael!!
Unfortunately not equippd with an adam's apple it is hard to truly comment on growls (tried it twice:lol:)) but in my listening opinion the vocals on Morningrise are brilliant. Mikael's vocal range over the last 5 Opeth releases is ASTOUNDING! Listen to 'Nectar' on some really good headphones. he he
 
Bloodbath. Are you unfamiliar with Bloodbath? It's a side-project band including Mike, Anders and Jonas from Katatonia, and ex-Edge of Sanity mainman Dan Swano. They did a mini-CD called "Breeding Death" through Century Media. They claim that it's simple, brutal, old-school death metal (but come on, look at the guys in the band... it's better than that).
 
I think Mikael is one of the best (read: only tolerable vocalists being that I'm not generally a death metal fan) at both the low-end and screechy growls, and he alternates between them to great impact. He has refined it as much as his clean vocals have improved since the first two albums.
 
I've heard elsewhere that lyrics don't matter to some fans of Opeth-- which is like WHA?? One thing i've realized about Opeth compositions is that lyrics play a very important role in carrrying the music- it gives the music a greater fluidity, sets its tone, determines its character etc. Opeth can't be really and truly appreciated without the lyrical narrative known or read along with the music. It's like watching a movie with a blind fold on-- it helps to imburse oneself in the music with a knowledge of the protagonist's suffering in the music.


With that said, the higher pitched screaming, which you call "raspy" and I might call desperation and extreme passion, suits the music, and equally or more importantly, suits the lyrics perfectly, and gives it a fuller expression than his lower "blasts" could have given it. His singing is perfect on morningrise- at least imo, i wouldn't have it any other way.