Originally posted by Vile1011
I actually got into Opeth because people compared it to Tool. Numerous people were going on and on about how one note of Opeth completely obliterated everything Tool had ever done, and how Tool was in effect a crippled mosquito in comparison to the gods that were Opeth.
Opeth came in with all biases against them. Up until then I had never heard a band even approaching Tool. Their music just appeals to my personal tastes more than any other band I've heard. So I gave Opeth a try with the preconceived opinion: "They're over-rated".
Well, Opeth took that preconceived opinion and beat the holy hell out of it. A few months later, I've bought all of their CDs and can't find one song I don't like.
Tool and Opeth both share the #1 slot, alternating back and forth depending on which one I'm listening to at the moment. Both bands accomplish their goal in very different ways, and in many areas the weaknesses of one bad are the strengths of the other. Tool has more emotional energy, and their songs rarely feel like a stream of riffs pasted end on end. One of my major complaints about Opeth is most of their songs lack true climaxes. Bleak is one of my favorite songs, but about 3/4 of the way through it just repeats itself, instead of giving us a good finisher. Tool are much better and making songs that actually go someplace without adhering to the stone-set structure of most mainstream rock. With the proper buildup, progression, and juxtaposition of segments, a guitar chord that never would have liften your eyebrow by itself can become the most emotion piece of music you've ever heard.
While Opeth songs are usually just riffs pasted end on end, they are EXTREMELY good riffs pasted end on end. Their soft sections are soothing, the heavy sections empowering, the transitionals perfect.
Tool could never pull of The Funeral Portrait, Opeth could never pull of Third Eye. People who love Opeth for their style of music may not appreciate Tool's method, and vice versa.
