OPETH – The Roundhouse Tapes

Opeth has given Metal a new chain to wear. Bringing aspects of Progressive, Ambient Metal to fuse with Melodic, Classical yet Heavy Black/Death Metal, Opeth is one of the most diverse and eccentric bands out there … and you simply cannot group this mastermind of a band into just one genre.

In their live album, The Roundhouse Tapes, they combine songs from former albums such as Damnation, Blackwater Park, Still Life, Ghost Reveries, My Arms, Your Hearse, and Morning Rise. This CD was twisted together during Opeth’s performance in the Camden Roundhouse, London, U.K., in 2006.

Only Opeth could get away with putting nine songs into a two-disc set, and the fact their songs range anywhere from 6 – 10 minutes plays an important part. However, only one song from their newest album, Ghost Reveries, makes it on here, and that’s “Ghost of Perdition.” Opeth instead lays out the majority of songs from prior albums, save for Deliverance.

The red carpet of this album is “When” from My Arms, Your Hearse. “When” opens this album with such grace and provides the complete definition of Opeth. The ninth track, “Demon Of The Fall,” is off the same album as well. “Blackwater Park” and “Bleak” brace with their presence — both from the album Blackwater Park — and are indeed fantastic.

The third track, “Under the Weeping Moon” (off Orchid) is certainly one of the greatest tracks on offer here. It shows Opeth’s capabilities to combine harsh vocals from Mikael Akerfeldt with mysteriously dark music. It transverses from Death Metal to Instrumental, and is capable of sending chills up your spine.

Off the album Morning Rise, “Night In Silent Water” won’t disappoint you as it expresses a hypnotic side of Opeth. Akerfeldt shows off his vocals tremendously by switching from growls to an emotive clean style. “Windowpane” off the Damnation album, and “Face Of Melinda,” from Still Life also made their way onto The Roundhouse Tapes.

Opeth is a truly remarkable and unmistakably phenomenal. The Roundhouse Tapes is an amazing live record, confirming Opeth is more than just a successful studio band. The two-disc set is kind of like Pantera’s Best Of; an album featuring all of their best songs. “Opeth create a shocking beautiful thunder … (the) band continually expands the definition of what Metal can be.” — Rolling Stone. If you enjoy mellow, yet extraordinarily Dark Metal, check out this Opeth release!