Opeth
Orchid

Few other bands have debuted with such a resounding bang and with so much richness of original ideas as Opeth did with Orchid. Three titles come to mind that, although dated compared to the work in question, present some affinities with the great Swedish group, namely A) Gentle Giant Self-Titled 1970 (Thesis) B) Black Sabbath Self-Titled 1970 (Antithesis) C) High Tide Sea Shanties 1969 (Synthesis). It is no coincidence that I referred to classics of PROG, HARD, and finally a seminal DARK-PROG to introduce the discussion on Orchid. With this debut work, Akerfeldt's band inaugurates, or rather resumes, a way of interpreting prog-metal quite different from the hyper-technical approach of Dream Theater, whose forebears should rather be found in YES and RUSH. Here instead, focus is placed on content rather than form, on the primacy of emotion over technique, on the phase of composition versus execution. The final result is indeed a Dark-Prog full of tension, pregnant with dark creative energy.

Anyone who has listened to that masterpiece known as Sea Shanties cannot have failed to be struck by the electrical guitar outbursts alternated with Simon House's magical violin. It is a roaring and dramatic continuum of extremely hard yet sinisterly melodic riffs that follow each other, alternating with solos that, in turn, plunge back into the incandescent maelstrom of an ever-evolving groove. Indeed, I experienced this sensation once more when listening to Orchid. Here too, the two guitars of Lindgren and Akerfeldt chase each other, creating an electric continuum, fervent with creativity, where it is difficult to say where the riff ends and the solo begins, as both merge into a single intense stream of sonic lava, just mitigated by acoustic excursions that paradoxically add further tension to the track instead of smoothing it out. All the tracks of Orchid, excluding the delightful digressions into piano and folk guitar in Silhouette and Requiem, are substantiated by this intense sonic magma, as creative as it is intense. There is indeed no continuity solution, the listener is not even allowed a moment to breathe. All the pieces are of the highest quality level, although the two final gems "The Twilight Is My Robe" and "The Apostle In Triumph" stand out, in which Opeth truly outdo themselves. Listen to the escape-solo at the 8th minute of "The Twilight Is My Robe": it gives you chills, reminds me of the famous and sinister solo of War Pigs. The beginning of the following track is then brilliant and exhilarating with the rise of a frenetic acoustic guitar adding further drama to a track already brimming with it. Guys, if you liked this album, trust me, go ahead and get yourself “Sea Shanties” by “High Tide,” which is its archetype, remote in time but very close in spirit and sound. For more information, I refer to my forthcoming review.