MY ARMS, YOUR HEARSE

Now, i've been listening to Opeth since they released this in 1998, and this is the cd, obviously, that turned me on to their beauty. Although this album is much heavier than the proggier albums, it still contains some of the most eclectic and downright dark riffs i've ever heard. I listen to alot of metal, Death, Black, Thrash, Progressive and so on and so forth, but in all the bands and albums i've heard, i've never heard anything like Opeth, ever.

The thing that stands out in this album is the variety in songs. April Ethereal is a chaotic masterpiece, riddled with acoustic melodies and heavy, almost sludgy riffs, with the obvious growls by Åkerfeldt, but also his clean voice, prevelant in most Opeth songs. My personal favorite and the apex of the album in my eyes, When is the song that turned Opeth on for me. The thirty second groovy riff intro leads into an obvious heavy riff and growl. The song flows so smoothly, with clean vocals and growls spread well throughout. Madrigal is a filler song, but still mellow enough to keep on for its short duration, because it leads into yet another masterpiece. The Amen Corner, another brilliant work of showmanship, with chugging, drop D riffs, and more acoustic guitars!! With the occasional clean voice, mostly a growl song, nonetheless equally amazing, if you're into that. The single of the album, although not a single at all, Demon of the Fall is the shortest actual song on the album, but dont let length fool you, it contains some truly dark and evil riffs, and some brutal growls, not for the faint of heart. Definatly not a mellow song, and possibly the least prog if you want to go that far, but who cares. Credence, the slow song of the album, as Opeth has at least one of these on every album. Credense lures you in with soothing acoustic parts and 100% clean vox, a nice tranquil moodsetter. But, this all changes at the end, with the introduction to Karma, a fast paced, in your face metal classic, very overlooked as well. This song brings the heavy mood back to the album with the usual heavy riffs and clean voice and growls, a perfect blend as usual.

Although not considered the best by many, this is the definitive Opeth album for it's variety, technicality and just down right awesomeness.