ORCHID

Opeth have traveled a long way since their humble beginnings in Huddinge, a small town south of Stockholm. Formed in 1990 by David Isberg (vocals) and Mikael Akerfeldt (guitars), the duo enlisted Akerfeldt's former Eruption band mates Anders Nordin (drums) and Nick Doring (bass). Not long after, a second guitarist Andreas Dimeo was added to the line up. After a few gigs, the band splintered, with Dimeo and Doring exiting for personal reasons. It was the introduction of Peter Lindgren (bass, then guitar), where things started to get more serious. Even the departure of Isberg in 1992 didn't heavily affect the newly established core of Akerfeldt, Nordin, and Lindgren. But, it wasn't until the entry of the bassist Johan De Farfalla that Opeth was formally complete. With this line up Opeth released their debut studio work "Orchid".

So, "Orchid" is the debut studio album of Opeth and that was released in 1995. The line up on "Orchid" is, as I mentioned, Mikael Akerfeldt (lead vocals, electric and acoustic guitars), Peter Lindgren (electric and acoustic guitars), Johan De Farfalla (backing vocals, Hofner bass, Washburn fretless bass and semi-acoustic bass) and Anders Nordin (drums, percussion and piano). "Orchid" had also the participation of Stefan Guteklint (bass), as a guest musician.

The Opeth's debut album "Orchid" isn't mentioned much by Opeth's fans but it's certainly a great work. The band that would forever change the face of metal over the years by incorporating progressive rock and folk elements into their music like no other launched this debut onto an unsuspected and amazed public. This wasn't an ordinary death metal album. Of course we have Akerfeldt's growls, but he tempered them with scattered melodic clean passages that were quite beautiful. In addition, plenty of intricate, folksy acoustic guitar interludes were woven into most of the songs from Akerfeldt and Lindgren that when mixed with the complex and heavy electric guitar parts made for an uncanny sound that was surely metal, but highly reminiscent of the great progressive bands of the 70's. This was a great debut album.

"Orchid" has seven tracks. "In The Mist She Was Standing" shows its strength with an epic and powerful riff. On this album Opeth proved to be a band that knows exactly how to make introductions to their songs. They don't get too long, they don't get boring because the construction of riffs and melodies is very good and not to mention the attention they add after the intro of each song. "Under The Weeping Moon" has a soft beginning but with a quite intriguing riff, which then evolves into a devastating and emotional sound. In fact the style of composition in the guitar melodies are quite similar to Katatonia. It has a more psychedelic and generally creepy atmosphere, introduced by acoustic guitars before yet another switch into full distortion. "Silhouette" is a beautiful, almost classical sounding piano interlude composed by Nordin, a real rarity for Opeth. This excellent piano interlude is very short, a magnificent piece with several different melodies and key changes to be found conjuring a mystic nocturnal atmosphere. It's simply beautiful and should never be overlooked. "Forest Of October" has some of the most beautiful and sorrowful melodies of the whole album and it really are yet another truly memorable and perfectly composed song. It's one of the best tracks on this album and it's also a song of great historical importance when it comes to Opeth's evolution from the more standard Death Metal to what they are now. "The Twilight Is My Robe" is another lengthy epic. It's arguably one of the album's easiest tunes to get into due to its high amount of catchy riffs. It has some of my favourite Opeth's acoustic passages on the album. The band embraces once again their prog rock roots, with mesmerizing acoustic sections, complex electric passages, and overall it just drips with atmosphere and emotion. "Requiem" is their first acoustic interlude and although rather short, it's still a superb piece of acoustic material. It's quite lovely, and it's a shame that it's as brief as it is, but there's barely time for a breath. "The Apostle in Triumph" is like some up tempo yet gloomy folk piece. Despite the overused acoustic guitar, Opeth proves they are capable of mixing other instruments into their songs in a brilliant way. The soaring guitar harmonies seep into the mix with loads of melancholy and despair increased more due to the Akerfeldt's death vocals.

Conclusion: I confess that I expected a much weaker album according to the ratings on Progarchives. But, it seems I was wrong. It's true that "Orchid" isn't a perfect album but is a very solid album, especially for a debut from a new band trying out an original music style. Although maybe not as well executed as some of their later albums, but definitely has earned its place in the progressive metal history. "Orchid" still shows all the great characteristics that would come to the forefront on such mammoth albums as "Still Life", "Blackwater Park", and "Ghost Reveries". It's very well executed through an interesting and highly sensitive musical style that its creators used to explore both musicality and emotion. There's a large world to roam and plenty of parts that you'll be surprised to remember without too much effort. Each Opeth release is considered a classic in the eyes of many that also believe this band not yet released a weak album.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

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