DAMNATION

This was my introduction to Opeth, and it is a great introduction for people afraid of prog metal. For prog metal fans, this will be a disappointment that should be taken with caution. It is very solid, but is NOT progressive death metal by any means. This is very much regular progressive/space rock. While being very good, the music all has a very similar style, and isn't very complex at all. The electric guitar doesn't have much distortion, and has a pretty clean sound overall. There also isn't very much speed or complexity, but every song does have a great rhythm.

The keyboard tones used here are some of my favorite, and are very cool. The music is pretty tough to describe. It has a Pink Floyd kind of sound with occasional Porcupine Tree sounds (which would make sense because one of their members, Steven Wilson, is on keys).

One of my favorite songs is probably the opener, Windowpane. It has a cool main riff, and has a proggy ending. In My Time of Need has really nice vocals. It has a great beat, and is really good. Death Whispered a Lullaby has a very similar sound as the last two songs. It has a nice acoustic riff with a nice beat. It has a very nice chorus however, and has nice progressions. Closure is kind of cool, but isn't the best song on the album. I do like the bridges, though. Hope Leaves is a really beautiful song that is absolutely incredible. It's amazing what these guys can accomplish in just a four and a half minute song.

To Rid the Disease contains sections that were written to be part of Mikael's side project, Sorskogen. I really like the chorus to this song. Ending Credits is an instrumental piece that has some nice guitar work from Mikael Akerfeldt. Weakness is the darkest song on the album. It's not bad, but isn't a great closer either.

In Conclusion, Damnation is a solid album. It deviates Opeth's typical death metal sound, and has a new sound that Opeth does pretty well. The only problem is that it's lacking in complexity, and the music all sounds too similar. With that said, this is a very good album that still is a frequent guest in my CD player, regardless of its flaws.

3 stars.