Lately, I've been doing quite a lot of research into Mikael Akerfeldt's (Opeth) musical tastes and influences. The most obvious one - judging by the fact that he talks about them one way or another in every interview he gives - is Camel. I've already got hold of their entire catalogue up to 1991 and I'm nothing short of mesmerized. While it is certain that not all of the material has the same quality and while it is also true that I haven't heard enough to make a proper judgement, I can honestly say that some of the more progressive and instrumental passages are quite beautiful. Again, it's music quite unlike much of the other stuff I've been listening to for the past couple of years and to be honest about it, that always pleases me. I like new things.

What triggered this journal entry however was the following quote from a "Damnation" review I've just read a few minutes ago..


Much like Pink Floyd’s conceptual Dark Side Of The Moon and its study of the human psyche, Opeth’s Damnation is rumination on the human ability to deal with loss. The ability for a band with such a bombastic arsenal of musical ability in the field of metal and hard rock to actually perform such songs of melancholy and beauty is a thing of true spectacle. The even more amazing fact is that they performed and recorded Damnation at the exact same time they did Deliverance. Their ability to create two startling pieces of art within the same time frame and under a sense of pressure I can’t even imagine is superhuman in it’s theory alone, much less it’s application. Damnation will be a timeless testament to the will of Opeth’s vision and talent. This is the band that Tool longs to be only if they had the humility, the band that Radiohead longs to be if they only had the chops; Opeth is the band, and make no bones about it; they are the band to lead metal (be it death, black, heavy, progressive) into the promised land.


I found this to be quite interesting and possibly one of the most flattering comments about the band I've ever read. While I don't completely agree with everything it says, I agree with the meaning it tries to convey - that Opeth are an incredible band, capable of doing amazing things and creating fantastic masterpieces. In fact, being compared to Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon", even in the most remote situation, is something to be proud of, in my point of view.

However, I beg to differ about the Tool and Radiohead commentary. Both these bands are huge in their own right and I'd rather not mistake grandiosity for humility as far as Tool are concerned. As for Radiohead, if I understood the criticism correctly, the guy who wrote this (Justin Press, for the record) was referring to the Radiohead's drummer being the weakest link of the band. While I tend to agree with that, the band is still so much more than a not-so-good pair of chops. I think whatever Radiohead ever longed to be they always achieved it be it the amazing and heartfelt rock of "The Bends" and "OK Computer" or the electronic experimentalism of "Kid A" or "Amnesiac". All in all, I find it quite difficult to find a term of comparison between these three bands. For me the only thing in common is that within their own particular genre (even if all are genre-defying) they are absolutely terrific and stand well above average.

As for Opeth, I can only eagerly await their next opus, supposedly to be recorded sometime in the Spring of 2005. Considering that Mikael has become a father earlier this year, it will be interesting to see how that will affect his writing, lyrically and musically, and how different Opeth will sound in the future. I'm aware that it'll be particularly difficult to top or even equal efforts like Deliverance and Damnation (in fact that's surely a one-off effort as Mikael states in the Lamentations DVD documentary). But Akerfeldt and the rest of the band are people that, much in the vein of Dream Theater and Mike Portnoy in particular, I've learned to trust and be sure I'll never be disappointed with.