(#5 on the Alfred Top 25)

Opeth "Watershed"


2008 was a great year for music, and one of the standouts of the year was of course, Opeth's Watershed. In a year with as many standouts as 2008, it's very hard to lay claim to album of the year. Unfortunately, Watershed was not album of the year (despite what I used to think about the album). But it is still a huge, monstrous, epic album that definitely puts up a fight for the title. Let's investigate the beast that is Watershed.

The album begins off with a sad, beautiful acoustic track called Coil. Mikael Åkerfeldt and female vocalist Nathalie Lorichs take turns singing on this gorgeous piece, and it works quite well. Putting the album on randomly, you might expect to hear classical guitar and dueling genders for the duration...

...but that is not to be. After the last notes of the acoustic guitar on Coil fade away, something completely different and just as magnificent enters the ears. This is the sound of Heir Apparent. A complex death metal track that is sure to please any headbanger. Clocking at almost nine minutes and featuring a number of changes in mood, tempo, and instrumentation, this is the sound everyone has come to expect from Opeth, and displays the heavier side of Opeth wonderfully. It's a brutal piece of music that, at its heaviest could put many heavier bands to shame. Åkerfeldt's growls sound as clear and guttural as they have ever sounded, and the instrumentation is as tight as possible.

The mid-range in Opeth's sound is shown off with the gloomy single Burden. It's soulful, emotional, and oddly catchy. Åkerfeldt's vocal performance is outstanding, and the accompanying lead guitar greatly adds to the level of emotion present throughout the song. The case is similar for the following single, Porcelain Heart. While the lyrics aren't the strongest, a lot of enjoyment is to be had throughout the song. With verses that sound similar to what was heard on Coil, and choruses consisting of sorrowful, yet catchy "ahhhhh's", this is the most accessible Opeth song you'll find. Nice touches like the electric guitar fading into the chorus make for a solid and engaging listening experiance.

What Opeth has demonstrated on Watershed is that they can be varied. They can combine just about every sound they've tried into one album and have it make sense and fit together. Soft, medium, brutal, it's all here. One moment, Opeth verges on a ballad, the next they're sharp and technical.

Watershed used to be my favorite Opeth album, without a doubt, but I find myself constantly debating whether that title belongs to Ghost Reveries. Either way, Opeth created an all-around solid album that just falls short of excellence. It's nothing that the band did wrong, it's just that at certain times, they may not hold your interest or you find yourself saying "I heard this before!". I feel that some of the heavier parts have been done better on previous albums, which is a shame because Watershed would be the ultimate Opeth album if not for this reason alone.

This little complaint aside, Watershed is the ideal album to listen to if you have never listened to Opeth before. It's soft, brutal, emotional, all rolled into one fifty five minute long engaging listen. Recommended.

85%
Awesome