Opel

You caught me off guard, I had no idea. I'll review it later.

At first listen, I wasn't thrilled; my expectations were different. By the second listen, I liked it, and from the third onward, I consider it a very good work. I fully agree with your thorough analysis, Suon. For now, I'll give the album a 4; it's hard for it to go down, but it has some chance of going up. P.S. I like that Techno piece.

I respect Cox's tastes, but as far as I'm concerned, I'm more inclined towards Lao's perspective. I understand his reluctance to define this record as enjoyable or easy listening. When I think of an easy listening album, I think of "L'Indiano," excluding that poignant gem "Hotel Supramonte," or musically even "Rimini." Here, every track (aside from the beautiful and pulsating "Dolce Luna") is quite heavy emotionally speaking; there isn’t even a glimmer of the lightness or carefree spirit that would distinguish the next two albums, or that characterized some of his other songs in the past. I listened to it again last night: decadent, nostalgic, ethereal, intense, poetic, romantic, sad, gloomy—these are the adjectives that come to mind each time. Also regarding the lyrics, the most ironic and "sparkling" line I find is in "Giugno '73": "Tua madre ce l'ha molto con me, perché sono sposato e in più canto, però canto bene e non so se tua madre, sia altrettanto capace a vergognarsi di me," and that says it all. Moreover, the album ends in a dark, very dark way; the music fades, but the turmoil and discomfort remain. At that point, you either shout, "fanculo Fabrì!" (and it's totally valid), or you fall silent. Let's say that if I had considered a third option, saying, "how enjoyable this album is," I would probably be watching a comedy film right now and instead of laughing, I would exclaim, "how entertaining!"

4.5. Let's say it was a shock to discover that "Nancy" isn't by De Andrè, though never as much as the blow I got when I found out that the melody of the song about lost love is taken note for note from a piece of classical music. De Andrè's version of "Le storie di ieri" is beautiful, but I think De Gregori's version is even more beautiful, where the song reaches its complete form. Anyway, these are just details, a truly great album, re-evaluated a lot over time.

@Proggen said: how can two completely different judgments be agreed upon? One has known and followed Opeth for a lifetime, says he really liked the album and that Cusp Of Eternity is a great song, in short, a positive opinion despite this new progressive phase not leaving a particularly strong mark compared to the past (which I agree with). The other has collected 3 listens for 11 album releases, says the album is crap, that the band is crap, that Cusp Of Eternity is crap, that metalheads are crap, that the reviewers are crap, that Progressive is total crap, that King Buzzo now comes and shits on all of us, and that you should ask King Buzzo if he's ever thought about doing Progressive, huh? Just ask him, come on, ask him, huh? Huh? Do you understand or not that King Buzzo shits on you?

Ah, and anyway Still Life has never fully convinced me, just so you know :) In my opinion, it draws from all the albums released before and after up to Ghost Reviews, which I've actually re-evaluated quite a bit.

Since Heritage was released, I have read and heard insane insults directed at Akerfeldt. In the end, he does what he feels like doing, plays what he wants to play. Those who tear him apart as a crazy egomaniac full of a need for the spotlight are just true fools, who first and foremost have no respect for the person and the musical journey of an artist who, for once, makes music following his heart and inspiration, and not what his most extreme and overzealous fans want to hear. Secondly, he does it with a courage and determination that should be an example for all the myriad of wannabe bands clogging up the planet, who would sell their mother's ass to sell one more CD.

The album is remarkable, well-composed, intriguing in its arrangements, with solidly structured tracks, good ideas, and interesting insights from the first to the last song (yes, the chorus of Cups Of Eternity would have all the makings to bore me, but it doesn’t). The previous Heritage struggled to sink in; there are moments of great depth, but I find it more meandering than this one. Here they have sharpened their aim with a more compact and accessible result. Regarding the so-called "old" sound (even if that were a bad thing), I have some reservations. Let’s say that off the top of my head, I can't recall a band that sounds like this (or like Heritage) from those years—can you? To me, these seem like albums inspired by the '70s but with clearly modern cuts and Opeth-like sonorities (much less than Damnation, but much more than what one might want to believe). There are references to Camel, King Crimson, Rainbow, Led Zeppelin, and Atomic Rooster, but in a very personal key; it’s a far cry to say it "sounds old" or "sounds the same." The latest Mastodon album, despite its "new" and appealing sound, left my Foobar after 4 days and never came back, while I keep listening to this one from time to time, and it’s always a pleasure. Sometimes, a musical genre is just a musical genre.

Is it a review praising Wo Fat or a critique of Mastodon? Let's say neither one nor the other, but thanks for the heads-up :D I like all four of them, I would dare to call them a great group. As you say, it's incredible that no one pays attention to them, but to lift them up there's no need to bring down the Mastodon; let's take down, I don't know, Sister Cristina.

cool, both the review and the proposal (which I’ll happily note down), welcome :)