three week break ( i had an exams.. and my birthday ...) so excited to return :) thank you all for watching! all my opeth reactions: th-cam.com/play/PLrn6n6RQvOqMwBIqQKeX1YcsOpfwiJbbn.html&si=slQ18e53C4T_yGXx
I just discovered your channel three days ago thanks to your Opeth reactions and today you react to one of the best albums from this band, which is my favourite of all time. For the future, I suggest you react to the new Opeth album that is realeasd tomorrow (The Last Will and Testament) or to Watershed (I think you will love this one). I love the way your dance at Opeth heavier songs! Cheers from Argentina!
Happy birthday! My present to you is a suggestion of another amazing swedish band called Pain of Salvation. If you love concept albums with awesome vocals and music telling deep stories, this band fits you like a glove. Goosebumps assured. Remedy Lane and The Perfect Element pt.1 are highlights. Along with Opeth, my personal top 2. Big kiss from Portugal 😊
May be a controversial take but Ghost Reveries was their last great album. Opeth is always good, but if you’re an old school fan like me you wanted the old sound over and over because it’s like a drug. He’s a legendary musician, and deserves to go in different directions, but you can’t beat the old Opeth sound..
Maybe the greatest solo I've ever heard outside of jazz honestly. I know Tornado of Souls is the de facto pick usually but man Serenity Painted Death's one is just perfect in every right way!
Moonlapse Vertigo is one that surely grows on you especially when you've heard more of their discography, it's my favorite song on the album tied with Serenity
@@ragunathtikiri480Opeths cleans are why I keep coming back. Sure, he is one of best growlers ever but his cleans provide such a nice contrast between his darker side. Moonlaspe Vertigo is my favorite track mostly because of his cleans.
Omg go see them. But DON’T AT THE SETLIST! I got a piece of it spoiled and I would have loss my mind when I hear the second of those songs (still did though) but anyway go see them, one of the best live bands and it’s an experience!
Story note: Melinda became a nun in the period the narrator was away. When the lyrics refer to her as 'promised to another' and her love for another, he refers to God and the church, which the narrator tries to convince Melinda to leave for him. P.S. Love the shirt. Daria is awesome
There is no way I just found out about your channel yesterday, watched all the Opeth reactions, and today you put out an Opeth album reaction. Amazing.
Blackwater Park usually gets all the attention and is many people's favorite album by the band, and rightfully so. However, this album I love just a bit more, the concept and the riffs, this is where opeth really built way more on the sound pieces they found in "My Arms Your Hearse", the album prior. Also White Cluster is such an underrated Opeth song, I love it
@Terminxman For sure. I will say Blackwater Park is the better closing track, but still, I love Still Life as a whole album more than BP as an album but its really close
Totally agree. Still Life's been my fav for a while. Many time's I've just put on The Moor and sure enough, and hour later "White Cluster" is still playing (this video being one of them). Every track is perfection.
I feel like your experience with the music is in many ways so relatable to Opeth fans, because you love the intensity and get excited when he does the obscene growls, but are willing to get lulled in, which is exactly how they get you, lol.
I think White Cluster is an incredibly underrated song. The ending is so thematically perfect. At the "outro" riff that fades out, i imagine his soul leaving his body, slowly fading away from this world. Then that mellow clean guitar part at the end is the somber reunion of The Exile and Melinda, who beckoned him as he died. Absolutely beautiful album.
I feel like Opeths sound really conveys longing, despair, hope, anger, reflection, and beauty really well emotionally. 😊 So glad you are enjoying Opeth!
I just adore your Opeth reactions! I could write a novel to you but I'll keep it simple: 1) knowing the final line of Face of Melinda is "But my heart is thine", listen to Serenity Painted Death again with the lyrics. The music hits the emotions so deep, and the hard parts are the heaviest of Opeth. 2) The new album, without spoiling too much, is also a concept album! Their first since this album 25 years prior.
You are so fun to watch! You have some of the most cutest and fun reactions of anyone I’ve seen listen to this band. I think you would love my arms, your hearse
Fantastic album. The second opening lead in Moonlapse Vertigo is amazing, especially after the drums open up. And the live version of Face of Melinda on Roundhouse Tapes is just *chef's kiss*.
"I don't know why they sound so good". Well, from a music theory point of view, Opeth's head (Mikael Akerfeldt) didn't know anything about music theory. He just went with his guts and he's a hard-worker. Hence why, academically speaking, he came up with progressions that are very unorthodox, they shouldn't sound great but they do. Watch "Daily Doug", he's analysing it and he's *in awe.*
I'm a big Opeth fan and I love to see your reaction videos because it is the same thing I do when I'm alone in my office or in my car, just go insane headbanging and enjoying the music.
Really sleeping on Moonlapse Vertigo! I think after a few more listens you would like it more! There’s a lot of nuance and also that intro section with the distortion guitar it’s very beautiful imo
YEEEES! BEST ALBUM EVER MADE! Would be awesome to see you react to one of their newer album as well! Pale communion and sorceress are also masterpieces and rarely talked about!
He has my favourite growl as well. It just has so much wholeness and power to it. It's also one of those growls where you can tell that he is singing something (you can tell most of the words he growls without looking at lyrics), unlike many other growlers, where it just sounds like noise for the sake of being noise. The growls also contrast the cleans greatly. Also, even if we ignore the quality of the growls, the way he paces them and matches them with the feel of the music feels amazing. The growls just levitate the effect of the songs greatly. They don't feel overused and very appropriate. 40:50 you don't have to worry about that I think. Their production has gotten better than before, and they are definitely still Opeth. A lot of Opeth moments in new Opeth. Also, the new album will have growls back, which is the first time after 2008. And the single they released with growls in it sounded awesome. I will be happy to see how you enjoy the evolution of their sound since, as you said, the albums you've reacted to have been 20+ years old. Yes - Opeth acoustic parts are so beautiful. And their uses of acoustic in their opeth-y transitions from heavy to soft and from soft to heavy is truly unique. 44:11 yessss. The guitar layers. Makes the sound really detailed and whole. Very much something Opeth use a lot as you have seen in the Blackwater Park album. Nice genuine reaction, enjoyed the video.
Since you enjoy Opeth, I would highly recommend checking out Edge of Sanity. Dan Swano, its founder, is a genius and he paved the way for all prog death bands that came after. He is also a childhood friend of Mikael's and even produced Opeth's first two albums. My recommendation would be either Purgatory Afterglow or Crimson, if you want a concept album like Still Life.
@@kirawasareactor Awesome! He's a very good producer and had a hand in creating some timeless records in both death and black metal history. I believe he did the audio engineering for all the Dissection records.
This is my favorite album of all time. I understand why everyone always talks about Blackwater Park and I love that album, but there's just something about Still Life. Just seeing the album art makes me feel some kinda way.
Whatever comes after masterpiece is what this is🙌 It's a lot to take in on a first listen, but the melodies, the growls, the drums, the transitions are just🤌 After a lot of reps and getting into the story more, this album can become a life changing experience! Near the top of my all-time favorite pieces of art🖤❤💀
I have absolutely LOVED your Opeth reactions, and this is no exception! I have a special bit of fan-canon regarding this album, which is that the main character/narrator is actually a werewolf! Its totally ridiculous, but the album is full of moon imagery in all the art (and referenced in lyrics), and also the main character always seems to have a supernatural aspect to him. The people in the town "sense" his presence, which is how he gets caught. When Melinda dies, he goes into a berserk rage, "claiming his flesh," which also, "came with the moon," and this is how he slaughters his way through the town of people after they kill Melinda. Its all very... spooky. Plus I think the opening track "The Moor" is a dead giveaway, as moors are often referenced as being a domain of werewolves or their kin. American Werewolf in London is a good example of this haha! Anyways, I love this album DEARLY, and I'm glad that you've enjoyed it as well!
One of my fondest Opeth memories was seeing them at the Milwaukee Metafest in 2000, their first show in the USA. Years later I met Mikael backstage at the Party San Metal Open Air in Germany and we talked about that show, great memories, very cool.
The sun sets forever over Black Water Park! Yeah, that some bad ass growling. Someday you'll hear the end of..."The Baying of the Hounds. Calling me back to my home!" Another epic song that ends with amazing growls.
Loving these reactions !!! Opeth is a GOAT demon of the fall is one of my fav tracks ....... I'm loving the optimism..... what we have in common is that I totally dislike clean vocals .... like some hardcore music I stick to is starting to do that and I just can't I want consistency but great reactions !
Yes, thursday is saved! ❤ Haha the funny thing is that I first thought Moonlapse Vertigo was one of the "weaker" tracks on the album. But 20 years later it grew for me to be one of the more solid. That's the nice part about Opeth, that songs can have a renaissance like that. When it comes to old stuff I would recommend: 1. Deliverance - since it was meant to be released as a double disc with Damnation to mirror different emotions (or something along those line), but they werent allow for the record company. So it's a heavier album. It where however released as a (remixed) double disc in 2015, called "Deliverance and Damnation" (duh). 2. Watershed - Arguable their heaviest album, and the last album that Åkerfelt growled on. 3. Ghost Reveries
It's one of my all-time favorite albums. I think every song is good and some songs are great. It will definitely grow on you. I would say overall it's a perfect album
28:50 : the album story is not anti-christian (luckyli) This record is anti-bigot and septs ; this is the topic, and is different. Melinda was forced to become a kind of a nun. (There The repentance)
This is my favorite album ever made. Came from Pink Floyd’s Animals I’ve always liked Prog and folk elements, which lead me to Blackwater Park. I was amazed but craving more. Where this masterpiece hit my ears. Incredible lyrics, incredible atmosphere, incredible musicianship, everything about it is special to me🖤 Glad you liked it
A little tidbit/context before you listen to the new album: prior to this new one, the last record that featured Mikael growling was 2008's Watershed. There were 4 albums between then and now with zero harsh vocals, and although Mikael would still do growls live when performing older songs, the band really made it seem like growls on new albums were a thing of the past. You can imagine the elation from the fanbase when the first single dropped from the new record and THE GROWLS WERE BACK. So exciting! IMO it's worth it for you to go through every single one of their releases, they all have value.
I still think that before listening to the new album you should listen to Pale Communion or In Cauda Venenum to get a glimpse of how Newpeth sounds like
Amazinggg react! Listen to the album My Arms, Your Hearse. This album is also a concept album, which Opeth released one year before Still Life, in 1998.
Little information about the new Opeth album "The Last Will and Testament": It is special because the growl is BACK! You have probably read in other comments that Mikael stopped growling after the "Watershed" album and the following albums became less death metal and more progressive rock. Well the latest record is the most progressive death metal I have heard them. And: you should definitely look into the concept beforehand.
Admiro la facilidad que tenés para fluir perfectamente con la música. Se nota que realmente estás disfrutando lo que estás escuchando. Saludos desde argentina
Opeth, the masters of tension and release! I love how their songs are built like mini 4 part symphonies. 1. Strong catchy start. 2. Melodic slower transition. 3. Tention building melody. 4. All out massacre.
I absolutely love this album. It tells a beautiful tragic story and the music never fails to make me emotional. Their first full on concept album. I have just finished listening to the new Opeth album and it definitely blew my mind. I'd love to see your reaction to it.
This is the first time I see a reaction where someone loves growls so much lol. Everyone else at best just prefers the cleans and at worst absolutely despises the growls.
Lovely reaction to my first death metal love, that I still cherish dearly, my favourites are "The Moor", "Benighted", and "Serenity Painted Death". This album was my first introduction to Opeth, and it is what pulled me into the growl world, the music was just too amazing so I just kept listening and got used and then learned to love the growls in time, remember this was back in '99-'00 when death metal vocals and so on wasn't very common yet and was and anyone liking it was seen as an extreme weirdo, and probably a satanist :D No regrets getting into this and Opeth has a very special place in my heart and Mikael is just such a good composer creating musical landscapes. I agree he has a special tambre to his growls that is special, I always feel it has some kind of "flabbyness" to it like there is something extra that is flapping around in there that is lacking in other growlers, making it feel even more guttural and dirty in some way. Also fun thing about my username the Beni part is actually short for Benighted which is my usual username in most places, but in a twitch community I was moderating people came up with the BeniBear name because of being kind of a teddybear :D So yeah, this album even has given me my "internet identity" that I have used for around 20 years now :D
For me, it's all based on what you're looking for. For example, Blackwater Park is the best album, but my favorite is still Still Life because Still Life gives me something that the other one can't, and I'll explain it in one word: melancholy. From the cover with that red that's almost turning to light orange to the riffs. That, added to the lyrics, takes me back to a time that I don't remember or lived through. It happens to me with the band Death too. Their album Spiritual Healing is the slowest of all, but not because they don't know how to make fast, technical death metal, but because it's done on purpose.
There aren't many albums that I remember listening to for the first time, but this is one of them. Know exactly where and when I was when I popped this in my discman. Never forget.
I would recommend you to explore other Opeth albums before hearing the last one. It is sort of like a culmination of their other work and you can clearly hear it. I think this would make it more enjoyable. I recommend either Ghost Reveries or Watershed next, and after those maybe you could do a newer album like Pale Communion. If you keep enjoying of course :)
I don't usually see alot of people echoing this sentiment, but "My Arms Your Hearse" is an album I think you would love. It's the album right before Still Life and is usually overshadowed by the more popular albums. It does hold some of my favourite Opeth tracks and I have a feeling you would really enjoy it.
Kira, I always have to laugh so much - unfortunately I only understand about 30% of what you say, but just listening to you and seeing your enthusiasm for the songs is just fun! Thank you for that! And by the way - Opeth is so fantastic. I wish you a wonderful Christmas time
Great video! One note to add about the story. In Serenity Painted Death, after Melinda gets killed by the church, the guy (unnamed) goes on a killing spree on the village. This is why he’s hung in White Cluster
Thanks. I'm glad you enjoy Opeth music. There's some particular flavour of melancholy there, which I hardly find in other metal albums. That's why I love them so much. I would humbly recommend listening to Watershed when you have some time. It's like the peak old Opeth album in my opinion. A farewell to the old Opeth so to speak. I think it won't disappoint you. p.s. My first also was Damnation btw.
Their album 'Heritage' from 2011 it's would be the perfect thing for classic prog lovers - example of perfect old-school prog-rock stylisation and most archetypical version of that style. Highly rec' you another Swedish prog metal - Dan Swanö band WITHERSCAPE, album 'The Inheritance' 2013, that have more beautiful melodies, vibes and male vocals than Opeth! Also, if you wanna some cinematic metal music with atmosphere kind of 'Pirates of the Caribbean' - pay attention on Swedish band THERION and Finnish band NIGHTWISH.
I've liked Opeth forever, but I've like really gotten deep into them in the past few years. Just saw them live for the first time in 2024 and it gave me like a whole new appreciation (They played Face of Melinda). I think this album might be my favorite. There isn't a single weak song on it. It has a great variety also. And if this is the earliest album you've listened to, you still have some gold like Orchid and My Arms Your Hearse which are also hard to choose between. I kept skipping through this to different parts because there's so many great ones I can't wait for
Blackwater Park is still over this one for me but yeah it’s pretty close! This is my 2nd favorite album of all time so…😂 The story is what really does it for me on this one! I loooove how it feels so medieval and every track really paints a picture of what is going on in the story! It’s like watching a movie in your head listening to it!🤩 But yeah it’s called ”Blackwater Park Junior” for a reason and I think it’s mainly the production and the song writing (instrumentals) that falls a little short on this one🍻
three week break ( i had an exams.. and my birthday ...) so excited to return :) thank you all for watching!
all my opeth reactions: th-cam.com/play/PLrn6n6RQvOqMwBIqQKeX1YcsOpfwiJbbn.html&si=slQ18e53C4T_yGXx
I just discovered your channel three days ago thanks to your Opeth reactions and today you react to one of the best albums from this band, which is my favourite of all time. For the future, I suggest you react to the new Opeth album that is realeasd tomorrow (The Last Will and Testament) or to Watershed (I think you will love this one). I love the way your dance at Opeth heavier songs! Cheers from Argentina!
@@fancotasargentina8165i will be reacting to their new release, yes!! Welcome:)
Happy birthday🎉🎉🎉
Happy Birthday!
Happy birthday! My present to you is a suggestion of another amazing swedish band called Pain of Salvation. If you love concept albums with awesome vocals and music telling deep stories, this band fits you like a glove. Goosebumps assured. Remedy Lane and The Perfect Element pt.1 are highlights. Along with Opeth, my personal top 2. Big kiss from Portugal 😊
you're gonna love Ghost Reveries
Yeah, you really are!
fr, their best album imo. it has their best song, but I can't decide which it is between like 5 candidates
May be a controversial take but Ghost Reveries was their last great album. Opeth is always good, but if you’re an old school fan like me you wanted the old sound over and over because it’s like a drug. He’s a legendary musician, and deserves to go in different directions, but you can’t beat the old Opeth sound..
I think she has reacted to some of the songs from Ghost Reveries, or?
Old Opeth beats newer one
Hearing you say, "I love the growl" is so illustrative of how far you've come. I love it.
Such a good point. I’m so proud of myself 😭😭😭😭
@kirawasareactor tbf Mikael also has the best growls in the business so, enjoy them!
@kirawasareactor lol I agree. You are showing some good metal instincts. The growl, the riff, the heavy!
@@W4Rx1Sx0V3R agree! I used to have no problem listening to growls, but Mikael have made me so picky with growls lol!
Serenity Painted Death just goes so hard 🔥🔥
EXACTLY
Maybe the greatest solo I've ever heard outside of jazz honestly. I know Tornado of Souls is the de facto pick usually but man Serenity Painted Death's one is just perfect in every right way!
Holy shit Myst has the best music taste
One of my favorites by them.
Worst song on still life
Moonlapse Vertigo is one that surely grows on you especially when you've heard more of their discography, it's my favorite song on the album tied with Serenity
She didn't like the cleans in Moonlapse but they're my favourite aspect of the song
@@ragunathtikiri480Opeths cleans are why I keep coming back. Sure, he is one of best growlers ever but his cleans provide such a nice contrast between his darker side. Moonlaspe Vertigo is my favorite track mostly because of his cleans.
Love the cleans on this album. Probably more than in any other.
Sound very full and rich
My favorite song by them. Not their best song, I know but it’s my favorite. Still life is my favorite album by them for sure.
The intro on Moonlapse might be my favourite from Opeth
"is this gonna be another perfect album, I'm probably speaking too early"
no, no you're not. it is perfect
Your reactions are a joy to watch. You brighten my days.
Opeth are touring Australia November 2025! Go see them, you won't regret it.
Omg go see them. But DON’T AT THE SETLIST! I got a piece of it spoiled and I would have loss my mind when I hear the second of those songs (still did though) but anyway go see them, one of the best live bands and it’s an experience!
depends what they play i guess
I am going to see them in perth !! I cant wait😭😭
Story note: Melinda became a nun in the period the narrator was away. When the lyrics refer to her as 'promised to another' and her love for another, he refers to God and the church, which the narrator tries to convince Melinda to leave for him.
P.S.
Love the shirt. Daria is awesome
There is no way I just found out about your channel yesterday, watched all the Opeth reactions, and today you put out an Opeth album reaction. Amazing.
it's meant to beeeeee :)
Every single note on Still Life is not a waste and has such a profound effect on the sound.
And that record was made in 1999. It's remarkable.
Blackwater Park usually gets all the attention and is many people's favorite album by the band, and rightfully so. However, this album I love just a bit more, the concept and the riffs, this is where opeth really built way more on the sound pieces they found in "My Arms Your Hearse", the album prior. Also White Cluster is such an underrated Opeth song, I love it
Blackwater Park as a song is a 10, the album as a whole, I think this beats it.
@Terminxman For sure. I will say Blackwater Park is the better closing track, but still, I love Still Life as a whole album more than BP as an album but its really close
Totally agree. Still Life's been my fav for a while. Many time's I've just put on The Moor and sure enough, and hour later "White Cluster" is still playing (this video being one of them). Every track is perfection.
The moor is one of the greatest songs ever
legit what an amazing start to this album
I feel like your experience with the music is in many ways so relatable to Opeth fans, because you love the intensity and get excited when he does the obscene growls, but are willing to get lulled in, which is exactly how they get you, lol.
I think White Cluster is an incredibly underrated song. The ending is so thematically perfect. At the "outro" riff that fades out, i imagine his soul leaving his body, slowly fading away from this world. Then that mellow clean guitar part at the end is the somber reunion of The Exile and Melinda, who beckoned him as he died. Absolutely beautiful album.
It's insane how slept on WC is.
Even reading this sends shivers down my spine. Maybe it is underrated by the community but surely not by me :)
The melody in godhead lament is so beautiful
Love your Opeth reaction videos! And belated Happy Birthday!
Thank you so much!!
I feel like Opeths sound really conveys longing, despair, hope, anger, reflection, and beauty really well emotionally. 😊 So glad you are enjoying Opeth!
Yep 100% the emotion is just incredible
the moor is probably just my favorite song of all time. the melody on 7:20 is my favorite part
I was waiting for you to check this album out, thanks for the video!
This is my favorite metal album EVER and even possibly my favorite album from any genre!
I just adore your Opeth reactions! I could write a novel to you but I'll keep it simple:
1) knowing the final line of Face of Melinda is "But my heart is thine", listen to Serenity Painted Death again with the lyrics. The music hits the emotions so deep, and the hard parts are the heaviest of Opeth.
2) The new album, without spoiling too much, is also a concept album! Their first since this album 25 years prior.
Think ghost reveries would be your favorite
oooo i'm excited to check it out :D
This is One of the Top 5 Best Metal Albums of All Time.
If you ever don't like an Opeth song, listen to it again, and you'll probably like it.
You are so fun to watch! You have some of the most cutest and fun reactions of anyone I’ve seen listen to this band. I think you would love my arms, your hearse
Fantastic album. The second opening lead in Moonlapse Vertigo is amazing, especially after the drums open up. And the live version of Face of Melinda on Roundhouse Tapes is just *chef's kiss*.
"I don't know why they sound so good".
Well, from a music theory point of view, Opeth's head (Mikael Akerfeldt) didn't know anything about music theory. He just went with his guts and he's a hard-worker. Hence why, academically speaking, he came up with progressions that are very unorthodox, they shouldn't sound great but they do.
Watch "Daily Doug", he's analysing it and he's *in awe.*
I'm a big Opeth fan and I love to see your reaction videos because it is the same thing I do when I'm alone in my office or in my car, just go insane headbanging and enjoying the music.
Really sleeping on Moonlapse Vertigo! I think after a few more listens you would like it more! There’s a lot of nuance and also that intro section with the distortion guitar it’s very beautiful imo
Hell yeah, Opeth is back with the growls, and Kirawasa is back with the reactions!
YEEEES! BEST ALBUM EVER MADE! Would be awesome to see you react to one of their newer album as well! Pale communion and sorceress are also masterpieces and rarely talked about!
I love this band and for me this is their best album. Godhead's lament is amazing. New subscriber from Argentina
He has my favourite growl as well. It just has so much wholeness and power to it. It's also one of those growls where you can tell that he is singing something (you can tell most of the words he growls without looking at lyrics), unlike many other growlers, where it just sounds like noise for the sake of being noise. The growls also contrast the cleans greatly. Also, even if we ignore the quality of the growls, the way he paces them and matches them with the feel of the music feels amazing. The growls just levitate the effect of the songs greatly. They don't feel overused and very appropriate.
40:50 you don't have to worry about that I think. Their production has gotten better than before, and they are definitely still Opeth. A lot of Opeth moments in new Opeth. Also, the new album will have growls back, which is the first time after 2008. And the single they released with growls in it sounded awesome. I will be happy to see how you enjoy the evolution of their sound since, as you said, the albums you've reacted to have been 20+ years old.
Yes - Opeth acoustic parts are so beautiful. And their uses of acoustic in their opeth-y transitions from heavy to soft and from soft to heavy is truly unique.
44:11 yessss. The guitar layers. Makes the sound really detailed and whole. Very much something Opeth use a lot as you have seen in the Blackwater Park album.
Nice genuine reaction, enjoyed the video.
Since you enjoy Opeth, I would highly recommend checking out Edge of Sanity. Dan Swano, its founder, is a genius and he paved the way for all prog death bands that came after. He is also a childhood friend of Mikael's and even produced Opeth's first two albums. My recommendation would be either Purgatory Afterglow or Crimson, if you want a concept album like Still Life.
I have been introduced to Dan Swano over on my Patreon, his clean production reminded me of Opeth
@@kirawasareactor Awesome! He's a very good producer and had a hand in creating some timeless records in both death and black metal history. I believe he did the audio engineering for all the Dissection records.
Crimson II
I'm so glad you did the whole album! I'm about to force my son to listen to it when he comes over for Thanksgiving
Still life and damnation change my life...from Chile ❤
damnation changed mine toooo
CHILEEEEEE!!!!! I was just learning about Chile the other day. REALLY neat country! :D Cheers from Oregon!
This was the album when I discovered Opeth, and it's still one of their best....excited to be seeing em again next year in NZ!
White Cluster and Godehads Lament are such bangers and they really grow on you after a lot of listens.
This is my favorite album of all time. I understand why everyone always talks about Blackwater Park and I love that album, but there's just something about Still Life. Just seeing the album art makes me feel some kinda way.
Whatever comes after masterpiece is what this is🙌
It's a lot to take in on a first listen, but the melodies, the growls, the drums, the transitions are just🤌
After a lot of reps and getting into the story more, this album can become a life changing experience! Near the top of my all-time favorite pieces of art🖤❤💀
The new album is so freaking good, feels like the old and new comes together in the perfect mashup AOTY
And yes, still life is a life experience, magnificent Album ✨️
I have absolutely LOVED your Opeth reactions, and this is no exception! I have a special bit of fan-canon regarding this album, which is that the main character/narrator is actually a werewolf! Its totally ridiculous, but the album is full of moon imagery in all the art (and referenced in lyrics), and also the main character always seems to have a supernatural aspect to him. The people in the town "sense" his presence, which is how he gets caught. When Melinda dies, he goes into a berserk rage, "claiming his flesh," which also, "came with the moon," and this is how he slaughters his way through the town of people after they kill Melinda. Its all very... spooky. Plus I think the opening track "The Moor" is a dead giveaway, as moors are often referenced as being a domain of werewolves or their kin. American Werewolf in London is a good example of this haha! Anyways, I love this album DEARLY, and I'm glad that you've enjoyed it as well!
As a longtime BTBAM fan, I can definitely hear the Opeth influence in their music. I need to get more into this band, I must admit. Great stuff!
BTBAM and Opeth are the gods of prog metal.
God it’s just one banger after another… my favorite of their albums
One of my fondest Opeth memories was seeing them at the Milwaukee Metafest in 2000, their first show in the USA. Years later I met Mikael backstage at the Party San Metal Open Air in Germany and we talked about that show, great memories, very cool.
"She swore her vows to another" he was referring to her vow to god as she is now essentially a nun calling her a "Harlot of god upon the earth"
Yessss I figured out later she married to the Church, makes so much more sense haha
Thanks for reacting to Opeth albums! It's really fun to watch you discovering such amazing songs.
you are so lucky to be experiencing Opeths for the first time.
We all did at some point, but yeah I’m super lucky to be able to document it and share it:)
If you like the heavier side I think you'd like My Arms Your Hearse its just as amazing as this album
I’ve heard good things about that one!
I agree best Opeth album
The sun sets forever over Black Water Park! Yeah, that some bad ass growling.
Someday you'll hear the end of..."The Baying of the Hounds. Calling me back to my home!" Another epic song that ends with amazing growls.
Loving these reactions !!! Opeth is a GOAT demon of the fall is one of my fav tracks ....... I'm loving the optimism..... what we have in common is that I totally dislike clean vocals .... like some hardcore music I stick to is starting to do that and I just can't I want consistency but great reactions !
His is the first growl that I could tolerate, then love. Moonlapse Vertigo is still one of my favorite songs, even 20 years later
Yes, thursday is saved! ❤
Haha the funny thing is that I first thought Moonlapse Vertigo was one of the "weaker" tracks on the album. But 20 years later it grew for me to be one of the more solid. That's the nice part about Opeth, that songs can have a renaissance like that.
When it comes to old stuff I would recommend:
1. Deliverance - since it was meant to be released as a double disc with Damnation to mirror different emotions (or something along those line), but they werent allow for the record company. So it's a heavier album. It where however released as a (remixed) double disc in 2015, called "Deliverance and Damnation" (duh).
2. Watershed - Arguable their heaviest album, and the last album that Åkerfelt growled on.
3. Ghost Reveries
It's one of my all-time favorite albums. I think every song is good and some songs are great. It will definitely grow on you. I would say overall it's a perfect album
I've been waiting for this video since your first hearings of Damnation and Blackwater Park!
28:50 : the album story is not anti-christian (luckyli) This record is anti-bigot and septs ; this is the topic, and is different.
Melinda was forced to become a kind of a nun. (There The repentance)
The juxtaposition of the down right infectious joy of listening and the dark, brooding, melancholy music. Love it.
If you love acoustic guitar, you will like "Empyrium" band or "Agalloch", check it both and enjoy!! Happy Birthday from Spain!
I love your reactions. Cheers from Italy 😊
This is my favorite album ever made. Came from Pink Floyd’s Animals I’ve always liked Prog and folk elements, which lead me to Blackwater Park. I was amazed but craving more. Where this masterpiece hit my ears. Incredible lyrics, incredible atmosphere, incredible musicianship, everything about it is special to me🖤
Glad you liked it
A little tidbit/context before you listen to the new album: prior to this new one, the last record that featured Mikael growling was 2008's Watershed. There were 4 albums between then and now with zero harsh vocals, and although Mikael would still do growls live when performing older songs, the band really made it seem like growls on new albums were a thing of the past. You can imagine the elation from the fanbase when the first single dropped from the new record and THE GROWLS WERE BACK. So exciting! IMO it's worth it for you to go through every single one of their releases, they all have value.
I still think that before listening to the new album you should listen to Pale Communion or In Cauda Venenum to get a glimpse of how Newpeth sounds like
Opeth is such a gateway drug to death doom too! Bands like early Katatonia, Daylight Dies, My Dying Bride, Trees of Eternity, Swallow the Sun..
Bro, check Woods of Ypres 🍻
Diabolical Masquerade! I slept on this in my teens, regret many years later.
Don’t forget Worm, Dream Unending, Tomb Mold and Lunar Chamber 👌
Amazinggg react! Listen to the album My Arms, Your Hearse. This album is also a concept album, which Opeth released one year before Still Life, in 1998.
Little information about the new Opeth album "The Last Will and Testament":
It is special because the growl is BACK! You have probably read in other comments that Mikael stopped growling after the "Watershed" album and the following albums became less death metal and more progressive rock.
Well the latest record is the most progressive death metal I have heard them.
And: you should definitely look into the concept beforehand.
“The Moor” is my favorite Opeth song. This album is one of few that I’d consider COMPLETE perfection.
Admiro la facilidad que tenés para fluir perfectamente con la música. Se nota que realmente estás disfrutando lo que estás escuchando. Saludos desde argentina
Me caen bien los nargentinos
23:18 lovely reaction , i understand your feelings!
This is my favorite album, I love it so much. I can tell you get it too!
Opeth, the masters of tension and release! I love how their songs are built like mini 4 part symphonies.
1. Strong catchy start.
2. Melodic slower transition.
3. Tention building melody.
4. All out massacre.
Repeat 2-4 as required
One of my all time favourites, I absolutely love this record 🤘🏻
I absolutely love this album. It tells a beautiful tragic story and the music never fails to make me emotional.
Their first full on concept album.
I have just finished listening to the new Opeth album and it definitely blew my mind. I'd love to see your reaction to it.
My favorite album; as a reactor ; and so far ( 7:00 ) lovely reaction from you ( The Moor )
My favourite album of all time, to think how Mikael wrote it... incredible
This is the first time I see a reaction where someone loves growls so much lol. Everyone else at best just prefers the cleans and at worst absolutely despises the growls.
Lovely reaction to my first death metal love, that I still cherish dearly, my favourites are "The Moor", "Benighted", and "Serenity Painted Death". This album was my first introduction to Opeth, and it is what pulled me into the growl world, the music was just too amazing so I just kept listening and got used and then learned to love the growls in time, remember this was back in '99-'00 when death metal vocals and so on wasn't very common yet and was and anyone liking it was seen as an extreme weirdo, and probably a satanist :D No regrets getting into this and Opeth has a very special place in my heart and Mikael is just such a good composer creating musical landscapes. I agree he has a special tambre to his growls that is special, I always feel it has some kind of "flabbyness" to it like there is something extra that is flapping around in there that is lacking in other growlers, making it feel even more guttural and dirty in some way. Also fun thing about my username the Beni part is actually short for Benighted which is my usual username in most places, but in a twitch community I was moderating people came up with the BeniBear name because of being kind of a teddybear :D So yeah, this album even has given me my "internet identity" that I have used for around 20 years now :D
36:51-38:31 gotta be my favourite moment on my favourite album
It fucks so hard.
Actually, the Godhead's Lament was my first Opeth track ever I've listened to about 15 years ago now and I absolutely love it to this day!
For me, it's all based on what you're looking for. For example, Blackwater Park is the best album, but my favorite is still Still Life because Still Life gives me something that the other one can't, and I'll explain it in one word: melancholy. From the cover with that red that's almost turning to light orange to the riffs. That, added to the lyrics, takes me back to a time that I don't remember or lived through. It happens to me with the band Death too. Their album Spiritual Healing is the slowest of all, but not because they don't know how to make fast, technical death metal, but because it's done on purpose.
There aren't many albums that I remember listening to for the first time, but this is one of them. Know exactly where and when I was when I popped this in my discman. Never forget.
I would recommend you to explore other Opeth albums before hearing the last one. It is sort of like a culmination of their other work and you can clearly hear it. I think this would make it more enjoyable. I recommend either Ghost Reveries or Watershed next, and after those maybe you could do a newer album like Pale Communion. If you keep enjoying of course :)
Benighted is such a gorgeous song. I feel it gets overshadowed by Damnation a lot, and it deserves its time in the sun/Opeth weather
I don't usually see alot of people echoing this sentiment, but "My Arms Your Hearse" is an album I think you would love. It's the album right before Still Life and is usually overshadowed by the more popular albums. It does hold some of my favourite Opeth tracks and I have a feeling you would really enjoy it.
38:50 , melodies and harmonies in this record are just SOOO GOOD! in a perfect balance With The harsh sessions
great opeth's album! love how you're jamming into it with a wide open smiling however dope Daria shirt btw you rocking girl.
"My Arms, Your Hearse" is closely tied to how epic this album is overall imo
Agreed, I’m always surprised by how much fans underrate that album. Maybe because of the production? It’s so damn good though!
Kira, I always have to laugh so much - unfortunately I only understand about 30% of what you say, but just listening to you and seeing your enthusiasm for the songs is just fun! Thank you for that! And by the way - Opeth is so fantastic. I wish you a wonderful Christmas time
Great video! One note to add about the story. In Serenity Painted Death, after Melinda gets killed by the church, the guy (unnamed) goes on a killing spree on the village. This is why he’s hung in White Cluster
Thanks. I'm glad you enjoy Opeth music. There's some particular flavour of melancholy there, which I hardly find in other metal albums. That's why I love them so much.
I would humbly recommend listening to Watershed when you have some time. It's like the peak old Opeth album in my opinion. A farewell to the old Opeth so to speak. I think it won't disappoint you.
p.s. My first also was Damnation btw.
Their album 'Heritage' from 2011 it's would be the perfect thing for classic prog lovers - example of perfect old-school prog-rock stylisation and most archetypical version of that style.
Highly rec' you another Swedish prog metal - Dan Swanö band WITHERSCAPE, album 'The Inheritance' 2013, that have more beautiful melodies, vibes and male vocals than Opeth!
Also, if you wanna some cinematic metal music with atmosphere kind of 'Pirates of the Caribbean' - pay attention on Swedish band THERION and Finnish band NIGHTWISH.
I've liked Opeth forever, but I've like really gotten deep into them in the past few years. Just saw them live for the first time in 2024 and it gave me like a whole new appreciation (They played Face of Melinda). I think this album might be my favorite. There isn't a single weak song on it. It has a great variety also. And if this is the earliest album you've listened to, you still have some gold like Orchid and My Arms Your Hearse which are also hard to choose between. I kept skipping through this to different parts because there's so many great ones I can't wait for
Perfect album start to finish.
morningrise is still their best album. so much acoustics and melodies. raw and aggressive vocals from Mikael
I don't know whether you mention it in your video, but the vocalist/lead guitarist named his first daughter Melinda :-).
Few years after this album Mikael got married and a girl was born in their family. Guess her name)))
Fred?
Very excited to watch this video but I had to stop the instant I saw the Daria shirt and compliment you on your style.
Oh thank you!!!!!
MAYH next it’s the only other concept album(and the greatest metal album of all time)
Also Agalloch the Mantle
Blackwater Park is still over this one for me but yeah it’s pretty close! This is my 2nd favorite album of all time so…😂
The story is what really does it for me on this one! I loooove how it feels so medieval and every track really paints a picture of what is going on in the story! It’s like watching a movie in your head listening to it!🤩
But yeah it’s called ”Blackwater Park Junior” for a reason and I think it’s mainly the production and the song writing (instrumentals) that falls a little short on this one🍻
They were inspired by Nick Drake (Pink moon) on this album, not least in "Benighted".