production potpurri

[Blind Guardian]

which is your favourite and least favourite opeth albums in terms of production and sound?(OBS not musically!)
I´d say my favorites are Deliverance, MAYH and Morningrise

Deliverance and MAYH because i like that dry kind of feeling the overall sound has,it sounds very evil and desolate to me,and adds to the already heavy material

Many think that morningrise has a bad production that lacks heaviness,mikael included so i´ve learned.
But i think the lack of heaviness is what helps carry the more fragile melodies and arrangement themselves,and it keeps it from being to intense.
The thin drumsound i would have hated on most other albums,but here it strangely fits somehow,at least to me.

My least favourite is Still Life

The thing i dont really like about the production on still life is that it sounds to
round and warm.Although this makes a great combination in the aucoustic parts,it takes away the rawness which i am very found of on the two first albums.
The drumsound, i dont like at all.Although they are pretty highly mixed,the actual sound is quite muffled and dull.The worst thing i know is when you cant hear the actual sound of the pedals hitting the skins and instead you just hear a "boom"

well,this is just some of my opinions,would be interesting to hear yours.

 

[Lothlorien]

I agree with most of what you've said. My favorite "sounding" album is Deliverance. Very crisp and clear, and adds to the songs as well.

 

[Ermz]

Damnation, without a doubt is my favorite. Everything sits in the right place, is filtered immaculately, and when the need arises the album goes from bone dry to ultra-spacey in a second. As much as I've had my qualms about the guy in the past, Steven did a real good job on this one. My biggest gripe with the production sound would be that the drums are slightly too dry for my tastes. Too much direct mic on the snare, and not enough room ambiance.

Morningrise is my least favorite production. I don't think I even have to explain why.

 

[griev0r]

My Arms Your Hearse?? I thought that was the worst album production wise. You can hardly make out drums and bass.

 

[biggsy]

I agree with Moony, I love Damnation's production. It's just so perfect for the music being played. I'd also have to say Morningrise for the worst. Doesn't stop TBYF being a fucking killer ballad though.

 

[stefan86]

Blackwater Park and Damnation are the best for me. BWP's is really focused on making the record sound eerie, while also being top notch in terms of quality. Damnation has a live feeling to the music while its still extremely well produced. Deliverance to me comes across as more dry and stale sounding than the other two albums produced by mr. Wilson.

 

[hibernal_dream]

Favorite: Still Life
Least Favorite: Deliverance

 

[Cyrosis]

My fav would be Ghost Reveries me thinks, Damnation as a runner up maybe, both are quite well done looking from a very technical, right and wrong perspective, (aside from mass compression on GR, but oh well) I am just mathematical like that I suppose. Worst, don't think I could decide, but Still Life has more reverb then a symphony recording should, and everything before that just has varied and very common "problems" I cant say I'm fond of.

 

[antiquesoul]

My Favorite: Moningrise
Least Favorite: Ghost Reveries

 

[HorrorbleOne]

MAYH would definitely be my favourite. The production is dark and almost akin to Black Metal. It fills the music with despair. The heavy subject matter also plays a big part in this. Brilliant.

 

[serenity_painted_death27]

I think they all sound good in their individual ways. Ghost Reveries is probably my favourite though. The only album I really dislike the production on is Orchid, I spose it's fairly obvious why.

 

[Arjen W.]

I think Blackwater Park is my favourite. Great quality recordings, a great warm crunch on the rhythm guitars, warm and smooth acoustic guitars, a full and round bass, the drums sound great... Deliverance is a bit too dry and cold I think, I dig this warm sound that BWP has. Ghost Reveries sounds too clean, the instruments don't blend enough.

 

[tchocky]

My favourite would probably be Still Life, I really like the warm feeling of it, if only The Moor didn't have those pissing drop-outs. They wouldn't be so bad if I listened on a sound system, but I use headphones so its particularly noticeable. I really like the drums on this album, I think it's Lopez' best drum work. The drums, though high in the mix are never, ever overpowering and I like how the double-kick parts are more of a rumbling, it adds to the over-all violent and dangerous feeling of the album.

My least favourite would be Deliverance for the 'dry' feeling, it just seems quite dull and kills some of the feeling. Still a fucking brilliant album though.

 

[Tubbs]

My favorite album in terms of production is Deliverance, without a doubt in my mind. It's rather thin and dark and fits the mood of the music perfectly.

Least favorite is Ghost Reveries. I'm not really a fan of crystal-clear production in metal records. The "nostalgia" feeling is lost.

 

[soundave]

To me, the best sounding record is, without a doubt, Damnation. Moonie said it best about the sound of that album, I think. It breathes, it sounds organic, and it's just gorgeous.

For number 2, I think I'd have to go with Ghost Reveries. Everything seems to sit right, it's clean, it has a fat warmth to it that I like. Very easy to listen to.

Morningrise is the worst. Aside from the thinness of the guitars, which as a previous poster said, kind of work with the material, it's the drums that get me. Particularly the sound of the cymbals, which sound warbly and underwater.

Deliverance is kind of a flat sounding recording -- I've said it a million times. Sterile. Cold (but not in a gr1m kvlt way...)

MAYH strikes me as a sort of "wall of sound" metal record. Not a whole lot of definition, but I think it works. Certainly a step up from MR.

 

[magicelf]

Favourite sound is easily Ghost Reveries

Least Favourite is probably Orchid/Morningrise

 

[Sky Coyote]

Interesting topic.

My favourite is definitely Ghost Reveries; I enjoy the "crystal-clear" production.

On a side note, I also like the production on Dark Tranquillity's latest album, Fiction.

 

[Necropeth]

i love GR's warm embrace......ahhhhhhhhhhhh.......feels...so good.....

 

[xDetonatorx]

I don't like to give albums credit for their bad production making them seem atmospheric. imo black metal relies on this trick way too much. The music should be as clear as possible, and the notes and tones should speak for the quality and artistry of any given piece of music. What most people call atmospheric production, I call cheap preamps and over use of reverb. It's every bit a trick as the multi band compression and "punching in" used on higher quality studio recordings.

So to answer the question, GR and Damnation are the best productionwise.

 

[Tubbs]

My favorite album in terms of production is Deliverance, without a doubt in my mind. It's rather thin and dark and fits the mood of the music perfectly.

Least favorite is Ghost Reveries. I'm not really a fan of crystal-clear production in metal records. The "nostalgia" feeling is lost.

I guess I changed my mind again... I've mostly been getting into production value because I'm going to get my own material recorded soon, so I've been paying attention to detail. So far, Morningrise has the the most bland, boring production I've heard on any Opeth album, and MAYH's enourmous amount of sound makes me tired after a while. Deliverance I still don't have a problem with, and I still think the production fits the album. My favorite now though is probably Still Life because of the warm sound, which seems to make the acoustics stand out a lot more on that album. (damn dropouts, etc.)

I don't like to give albums credit for their bad production making them seem atmospheric. imo black metal relies on this trick way too much. The music should be as clear as possible, and the notes and tones should speak for the quality and artistry of any given piece of music. What most people call atmospheric production, I call cheap preamps and over use of reverb. It's every bit a trick as the multi band compression and "punching in" used on higher quality studio recordings.

You have something completely backwards. Black metal (traditional, at least) should NOT sound as clear as possible, which is why it adds to the "classicness" of the sound. Adding reverb is usually meant to give it a sense of power and lasting (although sometimes it doesn't work). Albums like Nattens Madrigal by Ulver wouldn't be as classic sounding anymore with good production. There should be moderation, and having purposefully lo-fi production isn't always a bad thing. There is a difference between boring production and low quality production iyam.

Also, I wrote this half-asleep so hopefully everything I've typed doesn't sound like a bunch of ranting from a 13 year old kid.