Damnation 101

Hey guys,

Welcome to the 101st post of The Llog! I know, it's really not that stellar since it's taken me 3 or 4 years to post that many, but still... 101 posts!

Anyway, since resuming regularly on The Llog, I've been posting about the music of a band called Opeth. I can't stop listening to them.

About a week ago I posted a small review for their sixth album ("Deliverance") and then let you guys know that I was moving on to the seventh ("Damnation") for listening. I've been spending about two weeks on each album as I listen through the band's catalogue, but the combination of this being a short album and pretty straightforward compared to their others and also the fact that I've got massive driving time coming up this weekend... I wanted to delve into a new album for listening.

Soooo... This will serve as my little mini-review for "Damnation".

I've gone from thinking this might be my favorite Opeth album (before listening), to thinking it might be my least favorite (upon the first couple listens) to thinking it's a pretty damn good album (now).

The reason I thought it might stand out to me before listening was the fact that I knew going in that there were no growled, grunted, or screamed "death metal style" vocals. While I really don't mind the growled vocals (Really. I don't at all.), I love Mikael Akerfeldt's clean singing voice. Love it.

Still, though, there was something about this one... It's nice, it's mellow, the songs are magnificent, but I think I really like the mix of the heavy and soft music on all other Opeth releases just a bit better.

That said, I'm not going to take anything away from "Damnation". Equal parts beauty, melancholy, and genius, this is a great offering from Opeth.

Let me post for you below the track that's probably become my favorite on the album. Enjoy "To Rid the Disease" below.



To Rid the Disease



I love that song. Though, it's pretty mellow, there's just something eerie behind it. Beautiful... but eerie. And the chorus. It's so good that Mikael has used the vocal melody in two songs. The other tune is actually by a side project of his called Sorskogen and is sung in his native Swedish. YouTube that one if you're interested. It's the only song Sorskogen has to my knowledge.

Also, I LOVE the melody in just that one little line of background vocal that appears for the first time at 2:49. "I have lost all trust I had in you..." There's just something about it.

And well... I'm not able to do my usual and post a heavy song and a mellow song from this release since they're all pretty laid-back, so let's do a song with vocals and one without. I'll post the instrumental "Ending Credits" below.



Ending Credits



I absolutely love the tone of the lead guitar in that track. So smooth and almost bluesy. Mikael said in the DVD "Lamentations" that the song was "totally ripped of from a band called Camel" who have been said to be one of his major influences. I may have to check them out.

Anyway... There are my thoughts on "Damnation". I'll be moving on to the eighth album "Ghost Reveries" now. I'll be back with some things about that and perhaps some other things... maybe sooner than you think.

Peace...

*-Note: The above video for "Ending Credits" was not an official video for the song, but it was the only one I could find with audio of the song. Thanks to YouTube user grossheria for putting that one together and posting it.