x Opeth x said it.
I'm so fucking impressed with Lopez. He literally blows my mind. Since mayh he has grown in leaps I think.
The thing about great drumming is that you don't notice it a whole lot unless you focus on it, otherwise it just kind of blends into the tune like it should. Shitty drummers stick out, great drummers don't. Lopez isn't soloing or anything, he's blending, and he does it with a level of contemplation and tight perfection. I think Lopez's style matches and contrasts so well with Mike and Peter. Lopez has a very brutal quality to him, even when he's playing softly and doing jazzy stuff, I can feel and smell the testosterone, hehe, very cool. And when he plays brutally he's so relaxed and well timed that it sounds smooth and melodic (just like Mike brutal vocals). It's all about the texture, the nuances in music that only be described with fuzzy words like "texture", "inflection", "feeling".
Let me put it another way: I think Lopez is way way better than Mike Portnoy (and I realize how the so called prog metal crowd seems to love to lick p's balls, hehe).
There's something intangible in his playing that really pulls me in, it's dark and beautiful. He's not the most technical player I've ever heard, but he's not trying to be, Opeth work together as a complete unit and Lopez fits perfectly. I think Opeth are more commited to making meaningful songs that fuck with your emotions than they are about being as blindingly techinical as they can. I think tha'ts cool cuz that's what real music is all about, it isn't hung up on trying to be something, it simply is. I think that Opeth are true prog because they aren't "trying" to be proggy, the proggyness *flows* naturally from mind. I think it's incredibly obvious that every single note on Deliverance is (to use an analogy which denotes the feeling I'm trying to get across) spilled like blood from the deepest regions of mind. It's doesn't seem overly contemplated, it was inspired, not over-thought, and that's what makes it so fucking cool to me.
Also, I think the bass on Deliverance (henceforth known as "D" I guess, if the convention persists) is very very cool and interesting, and kinda painful.
As this point I don't think Mike and Peter could get any better at playing guitar, fuck, it's that intangible quality, something that doesn't quite translate into words, you know?
Mikael is just so fucking cool. What guy, screaming that shit so smoothly from his gut like that, and whispering those clean vocals, fucking awesome, what a performer. I think his vocals have been progressively better on each album. The thing with D for me is that the clean vocals are so fucking great, and shit, so are the growls. Will anyone anywhere ever have this man's vocal abilities? I'm not holding my breath in ancipation for that one. As Opet said, that vocal effect in the last tune is fucking whacky/cool, and I currently have a hard-on for the double growl harmony thing at the end of Wreath. Damn that's evil, and so fucking amazing.
I realize some people don't like the new album. I think a lot of this is because you are waiting for Opeth to return to the style of the album you most like. You know what, it's not going to happen, get over it. Deliverance is fresh and distinctive with a flavour all it's own.
I think that music should be appreciated for what it is, not for what it is not. I think all the albums, including BWP, have something unique to offer and I think they are all great in their own regard. I have my favourite but for me it is not the pinnacle to which all other Opeth albums are held in comparison too. That's a shitty way of looking at a new album, it's anticipating something which may not be there, which can lead to disappointment.
Opeth are just continuing to move forward and I think that's cool. We don't know what the hell they are going to do on their next album, but I'm sure it will also have it's own unique sound and textures. These guys are getting so fucking amazing at playing their instruments now, they were always amazing but fuck, now they are spectacular.
Not a day has gone by in the last 4 years when I didn't thank my lucky stars that Opeth exists and that I have the sort of mindly insane mind which appreciates them.
Hail Opeth. Amen.
Satori
), being picky about what I listened to was nearly bothersome. But hell, when I get new releases from bands like this, it's all good. I don't care that there are only a handful of bands left in the world I absolutely love anymore. The element of surprise is truly rewarding and Opeth's got that covered.
