Honest opinions on Watershed - Page 5

wokketywok · March 17th, 2009, 02:21 PM

Not my favourite, but it has two new members, so give 'em time. They will be better next time around.

Imo, watershed lacked the "autumn" feeling, which there is plenty of on the previous albums. Blackwater Park, Still Life, Ghost Reveries, Damnation, Morningrise in particular, created such awesome "images" in your head, if you know what i mean. Watershed didn't give me any cool images, but it was still a great album.

ressurection31328 · March 17th, 2009, 03:25 PM

It is a great album imo....it is BETTER than "Ghost reveries" ( yet definetely not as good as the band's milestones, "Blackwater park" and "Deliverance" )

"Heir Apparent" is a real killer- a great brutal song... its less noisy moments are also very beautiful, they sound really evil.

"Hessian Peel" is the album's epic, its peak. Every part of it sounds really great and Opeth once more manage to create a song which inspite of having dozens of riffs, melodies, themes, it has also UNITY... it doesnt sound just like a complex collection of riffs, but as a complex song whose every new riff/melody etc. brings us closer to the dramatic end.

"Hex Omega" is just a personal favourite. I know that many people are not impressed by it, but I am just in love with it.

"Coil" is a really beautiful acoustic song, the vocals of Nathalie are a very pleasant surprise and they give more colour to the song. The song has a very hopeful feeling, a feeling of rebirth which comes to constrast with the classic bleak and desperate Opeth atmosphere...

"Burden" is also a great song, but not my cup of tea. Although I certainly recognise the musical quality of the song, it just doesn't affect my feelings as much as the previous song.

"Lotus eater" is a quite strange song. There are parts of it that I really love, yet other parts sound to me not as good. I did not really like the combination of the clean vocals with the blastbeats.. but overall it is a great song and a very experimental one. And after all this is why I loved Opeth from the beginning, because it is a band which is not afraid to experiment with new sounds/new ideas etc.

"Porcelain heart" is obviously the most mediocre sonf of the album, and one of the very few mediocre songs that this very band has ever written...

Overall a great album in my opinion. Yes, it lacks the "autumn" feeling, yes the sound of Akerson is quite different to that of Lindgren, but I think that after all this is the MAGIC of this band, the fact that it always experiments, it always searches for new sounds, new ideas etc.

In conclusion, the sound and the style of "Watershed" may be quite different than that of the previous albums, but the "Opeth SPIRIT" is still alive just as it was from the first day of this band.

Slaydon · March 17th, 2009, 03:35 PM

Best album along with BWP and Still Life.

VaticanInFlames · March 17th, 2009, 03:36 PM

hexwind · March 17th, 2009, 03:53 PM

I was listening to it this morning and i removed Porcelain Heart since the start, and I really enjoyed it alot !! all the songs seemed connected to each other when PH was absent !! dunno, that's what I felt ! Good album and I love it !!!!!!

NicholasDWolfwood · March 17th, 2009, 04:34 PM

at least ghost reveries didn't have such horrid lyrics like "will the children cry when their mother dies?"

clean vocals over blasts isn't a new idea whatsoever either, guys. it was done by akercocke, and before them I believe...arcturus? had done it. (or maybe borknagar.) and before them etc etc etc

Lateralus14 · March 17th, 2009, 04:36 PM

GR >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> WS indeed.

And Lopez fanboys need to get it through their heads that the person behind the drums doesn't come anywhere close to defining any aspect of Opeth's sound. Opeth's sound = whatever the fuck Mike wants it to be. Period.

Hox · March 17th, 2009, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NicholasDWolfwood

at least ghost reveries didn't have such horrid lyrics like "will the children cry when their mother dies?"

clean vocals over blasts isn't a new idea whatsoever either, guys. it was done by akercocke, and before them I believe...arcturus? had done it. (or maybe borknagar.) and before them etc etc etc

+1, and I am pretty sure Borknagar is the name you were looking for. Can't remember Arcturus ever having clean vocals over blastbeats.

aprilethereal251 · March 17th, 2009, 08:50 PM

Personally I like Ghost Reveries more than Watershed, but Watershed is still an awesome album. I could go on for hours about the things I love about it, but I'll spare myself the effort of writing about 6 paragraphs.

However I will say that the songs this time around seemed a bit disjointed at times, especially some of the keyboard transitions, like a couple of parts in TLE and during the midsection of HP when things are just about to get heavy. Also, I'd personally enjoy it, if the next time around there were a few more heavy tracks with lots of growling/clean vocals interspersed throughout (i.e tracks like TLE, Deliverance, When, etc.), and maybe a good solid stripped down acoustic song like Benighted or Patterns in the Ivy II.

Any who, anything that could be taken as criticism above is meant constructively (i.e. I still think Watershed is kickass). If I could make better music that Mikael Akerfeldt I'd be off somewhere doing that instead of spending time on an Opeth forum. But I can't so I have no room to bitch.

Mr Samsara · March 17th, 2009, 10:16 PM

The records stand on their own.

Nasty-Fire · March 18th, 2009, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NicholasDWolfwood

at least ghost reveries didn't have
clean vocals over blasts isn't a new idea whatsoever either, guys. it was done by akercocke, and before them I believe...arcturus? had done it. (or maybe borknagar.) and before them etc etc etc

Personally, the exceptionnal stuff here is 1) Opeth added blastbeats 2) These blastbeats are even more special since there is clean vocal 3) It's Mikael's voice. I don't think anyone said it was new, maybe, but they don't know shit.

V... Pit of scorn? Penis gone? Tss.

BrandonS · March 18th, 2009, 02:21 PM

Slynt · March 19th, 2009, 08:35 AM

Got to comment a little here. It's just my opinion against yours of course but it is interesting to see how different views we have yet love the same band.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ressurection31328

It is a great album imo....it is BETTER than "Ghost reveries" ( yet definetely not as good as the band's milestones, "Blackwater park" and "Deliverance" )

Watershed better than Ghost Reveries? Not even at its best. Blackwater Park and Deliverance milestones? You must have confused them with My Arms Your Hearse and Still Life.

"Heir Apparent" is a real killer- a great brutal song... its less noisy moments are also very beautiful, they sound really evil.

Well ok we kinda agree here, but I don't feel it's a killer - the pace is too slow and the riffs are uninspired.

"Hessian Peel" is the album's epic, its peak. Every part of it sounds really great and Opeth once more manage to create a song which inspite of having dozens of riffs, melodies, themes, it has also UNITY... it doesnt sound just like a complex collection of riffs, but as a complex song whose every new riff/melody etc. brings us closer to the dramatic end.

I feel this song is indeed just a random collection of parts and the brutal part doesn't fit with the rest at all.

"Hex Omega" is just a personal favourite. I know that many people are not impressed by it, but I am just in love with it.

"Sleeping Pill" would be a better title for the song

"Burden" is also a great song, but not my cup of tea. Although I certainly recognise the musical quality of the song, it just doesn't affect my feelings as much as the previous song.

Love this song although I agree it doesn't fit the album/band that much.

"Porcelain heart" is obviously the most mediocre sonf of the album, and one of the very few mediocre songs that this very band has ever written...

It is, it is.

In conclusion, the sound and the style of "Watershed" may be quite different than that of the previous albums, but the "Opeth SPIRIT" is still alive just as it was from the first day of this band.

True, but I like autumn

affinityband · March 19th, 2009, 08:38 AM

as if all the other watershed threads didnt have posts that showed honest opinions

Nasty-Fire · March 19th, 2009, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slynt

Got to comment a little here. It's just my opinion against yours of course but it is interesting to see how different views we have yet love the same band.

Yes, it is interesting. But you aren't AGAINST, your opinion is just generally OPPOSITE.

Snusgropen · March 19th, 2009, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZeDzEdZeD

I've been fan for almost 10 years now and Watershed is't really anything special compared to all other Opeth albums... I'd say it first album that is feels worse than previous album... actually worse than almost all previous albums... saying that makes me really sad... the album has no flow, no style, no sound... just bunch of riffs thrown together... even worse and more uninteresting than Orchid...which turned me into Opeth and was favourite for years... on the other hand Morningrise - GR are beyond excellent... almost all band who have made so many albums have one or two "bad" albums... Watershed is actually listanable in 5.1 ... it sounds like it was ment to be 5.1!

the biggest loss which Opeth had is Lopez leaving Opeth... there is no other like him... his drumming was beyond anything imaginable... his drumming gave much of Opeth sound...

I think your "." key is stuck.

Mr Samsara · March 19th, 2009, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZeDzEdZeD

I've been fan for almost 10 years now and Watershed is't really anything special compared to all other Opeth albums... I'd say it first album that is feels worse than previous album... actually worse than almost all previous albums... saying that makes me really sad... the album has no flow, no style, no sound... just bunch of riffs thrown together... even worse and more uninteresting than Orchid...which turned me into Opeth and was favourite for years... on the other hand Morningrise - GR are beyond excellent... almost all band who have made so many albums have one or two "bad" albums... Watershed is actually listanable in 5.1 ... it sounds like it was ment to be 5.1!

the biggest loss which Opeth had is Lopez leaving Opeth... there is no other like him... his drumming was beyond anything imaginable... his drumming gave much of Opeth sound...

Interesting post. Bands change and people change. If you aren't moving in the same direction of the band, just enjoy the records you already own and stop lamenting the changes in the band. It's pointless.

BrandonS · March 20th, 2009, 12:55 AM

Bands have to evolve for the sake of progress.... Watershed isn't even remotely comparable to Orchid.... And as such, you really shouldn't judge a modern Opeth work compared to any past work. It's not like you're judging two Nickelback albums here, though with them being label-mates, there is always the possibility of a collaboration between Opeth and Nickelback. I'm kidding of course. But I have to make it clear that I'm kidding because a lot of people are dumb.

ZeDzEdZeD · March 20th, 2009, 01:03 PM

Well, since this thread is called "Honest opinions on Watershed" then it is just my honest opinion, and I am not bashing the band becouse I don't like Watershed so much. I am happy if Mikael is happy... and I am also happy that most albums and most songs are my favorites anyway.

Ghets · March 20th, 2009, 02:04 PM

as one of the people said earlier in this thread, it feels like a transitional album to something bigger, but also as more "mature" album. lyrically, i don't think it's as strong, but in general, it feels like a more mature sounding album for Opeth, which isn't exactly bad, and i was iffy at first about the change in the "type" of music, but even though it's not as good musically in my opinion as the previous albums, it sounds very "new".

Contra dk · March 20th, 2009, 03:50 PM

Watershed is their most mature album. There really is (imo) no bad song on it. A Fantastic performance from the whole band.

BrandonS · March 21st, 2009, 01:20 AM

At least it doesn't feature Mad Cat (burger and fries) on the intro track like the new Darkane does

Ninfix · March 21st, 2009, 06:01 AM

Watershed kicks ass. The three growl-tracks are fantastic, real Opeth-level. The other 4 songs are ok.

Kamel · March 27th, 2009, 05:02 PM

After reading some of the posts, not all, I assume that Opeth represents a "girl" for you: you'd want it to be only what you liked, and you wouldn't let it grow emotionally. Opeth's not a picture of your best friends that you lose after leaving school.

P.S: you know what i mean, right?

Daoloth · March 27th, 2009, 08:04 PM

Ok album not there best but it still has it's moments.

March 17th, 2009, 03:36 PM	#104 (permalink)
VaticanInFlames Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 21	__________________ "EAT SHIT NOISE MUSIC. KILL ALL NOISE ARTISTS! WE HATE WHITEHOUSE. PISS OFF NWW. ASSHOLE C93. SUCK PTV. FUCK COIL. WE LOVE DISCO SOUND!"-Yamantaka Eye, 1987

March 17th, 2009, 03:53 PM	#105 (permalink)
hexwind Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Psychedelic Planet Posts: 3,631	I was listening to it this morning and i removed Porcelain Heart since the start, and I really enjoyed it alot !! all the songs seemed connected to each other when PH was absent !! dunno, that's what I felt ! Good album and I love it !!!!!! __________________ I am just a spectator An advocate documenting the loss Fluttering with conceit This doesn't concern me yet Still far from the knell Opeth Forum Pabulum

March 17th, 2009, 04:34 PM	#106 (permalink)
NicholasDWolfwood Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 1,770	at least ghost reveries didn't have such horrid lyrics like "will the children cry when their mother dies?" clean vocals over blasts isn't a new idea whatsoever either, guys. it was done by akercocke, and before them I believe...arcturus? had done it. (or maybe borknagar.) and before them etc etc etc __________________

March 17th, 2009, 10:16 PM	#110 (permalink)
Mr Samsara Misanthropic Moderator Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Carrying a Burden Inside Posts: 1,566	The records stand on their own. __________________ Samsara - The Indefinitely Repeated Cycles of Birth, Misery, and Death Caused by Karma

March 18th, 2009, 02:21 PM	#112 (permalink)
BrandonS Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 2,663	__________________ my portfolio \| instaidgrace \| rainwound

March 17th, 2009, 02:21 PM	#101 (permalink)
wokketywok Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 38	Not my favourite, but it has two new members, so give 'em time. They will be better next time around. Imo, watershed lacked the "autumn" feeling, which there is plenty of on the previous albums. Blackwater Park, Still Life, Ghost Reveries, Damnation, Morningrise in particular, created such awesome "images" in your head, if you know what i mean. Watershed didn't give me any cool images, but it was still a great album.

March 17th, 2009, 03:25 PM	#102 (permalink)
ressurection31328 Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 18	It is a great album imo....it is BETTER than "Ghost reveries" ( yet definetely not as good as the band's milestones, "Blackwater park" and "Deliverance" ) "Heir Apparent" is a real killer- a great brutal song... its less noisy moments are also very beautiful, they sound really evil. "Hessian Peel" is the album's epic, its peak. Every part of it sounds really great and Opeth once more manage to create a song which inspite of having dozens of riffs, melodies, themes, it has also UNITY... it doesnt sound just like a complex collection of riffs, but as a complex song whose every new riff/melody etc. brings us closer to the dramatic end. "Hex Omega" is just a personal favourite. I know that many people are not impressed by it, but I am just in love with it. "Coil" is a really beautiful acoustic song, the vocals of Nathalie are a very pleasant surprise and they give more colour to the song. The song has a very hopeful feeling, a feeling of rebirth which comes to constrast with the classic bleak and desperate Opeth atmosphere... "Burden" is also a great song, but not my cup of tea. Although I certainly recognise the musical quality of the song, it just doesn't affect my feelings as much as the previous song. "Lotus eater" is a quite strange song. There are parts of it that I really love, yet other parts sound to me not as good. I did not really like the combination of the clean vocals with the blastbeats.. but overall it is a great song and a very experimental one. And after all this is why I loved Opeth from the beginning, because it is a band which is not afraid to experiment with new sounds/new ideas etc. "Porcelain heart" is obviously the most mediocre sonf of the album, and one of the very few mediocre songs that this very band has ever written... Overall a great album in my opinion. Yes, it lacks the "autumn" feeling, yes the sound of Akerson is quite different to that of Lindgren, but I think that after all this is the MAGIC of this band, the fact that it always experiments, it always searches for new sounds, new ideas etc. In conclusion, the sound and the style of "Watershed" may be quite different than that of the previous albums, but the "Opeth SPIRIT" is still alive just as it was from the first day of this band.

March 17th, 2009, 03:35 PM	#103 (permalink)
Slaydon Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: right outside Oslo, Norway Posts: 509	Best album along with BWP and Still Life.

March 17th, 2009, 04:36 PM	#107 (permalink)
Lateralus14 Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 2,040	GR >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> WS indeed. And Lopez fanboys need to get it through their heads that the person behind the drums doesn't come anywhere close to defining any aspect of Opeth's sound. Opeth's sound = whatever the fuck Mike wants it to be. Period.

March 17th, 2009, 08:50 PM	#109 (permalink)
aprilethereal251 Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: South Bend, Indiana Posts: 78	Personally I like Ghost Reveries more than Watershed, but Watershed is still an awesome album. I could go on for hours about the things I love about it, but I'll spare myself the effort of writing about 6 paragraphs. However I will say that the songs this time around seemed a bit disjointed at times, especially some of the keyboard transitions, like a couple of parts in TLE and during the midsection of HP when things are just about to get heavy. Also, I'd personally enjoy it, if the next time around there were a few more heavy tracks with lots of growling/clean vocals interspersed throughout (i.e tracks like TLE, Deliverance, When, etc.), and maybe a good solid stripped down acoustic song like Benighted or Patterns in the Ivy II. Any who, anything that could be taken as criticism above is meant constructively (i.e. I still think Watershed is kickass). If I could make better music that Mikael Akerfeldt I'd be off somewhere doing that instead of spending time on an Opeth forum. But I can't so I have no room to bitch.

March 19th, 2009, 08:38 AM	#114 (permalink)
affinityband Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Brackley, England Posts: 5,445	as if all the other watershed threads didnt have posts that showed honest opinions __________________ www.nuelle.co.uk myspace.com/nuelledesign

March 20th, 2009, 12:55 AM	#118 (permalink)
BrandonS Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 2,663	Bands have to evolve for the sake of progress.... Watershed isn't even remotely comparable to Orchid.... And as such, you really shouldn't judge a modern Opeth work compared to any past work. It's not like you're judging two Nickelback albums here, though with them being label-mates, there is always the possibility of a collaboration between Opeth and Nickelback. I'm kidding of course. But I have to make it clear that I'm kidding because a lot of people are dumb. __________________ my portfolio \| instaidgrace \| rainwound

March 20th, 2009, 01:03 PM	#119 (permalink)
ZeDzEdZeD dispassion player Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Tallinn, Estonia Posts: 397	Well, since this thread is called "Honest opinions on Watershed" then it is just my honest opinion, and I am not bashing the band becouse I don't like Watershed so much. I am happy if Mikael is happy... and I am also happy that most albums and most songs are my favorites anyway. __________________ __________________________________________ www.ecthalion.com www.myspace.com/ecthalion www.estonianmetal.com __________________________________________

March 20th, 2009, 02:04 PM	#120 (permalink)
Ghets Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 11	as one of the people said earlier in this thread, it feels like a transitional album to something bigger, but also as more "mature" album. lyrically, i don't think it's as strong, but in general, it feels like a more mature sounding album for Opeth, which isn't exactly bad, and i was iffy at first about the change in the "type" of music, but even though it's not as good musically in my opinion as the previous albums, it sounds very "new".

March 20th, 2009, 03:50 PM	#121 (permalink)
Contra dk ... Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Denmark Posts: 222	Watershed is their most mature album. There really is (imo) no bad song on it. A Fantastic performance from the whole band. __________________

March 21st, 2009, 01:20 AM	#122 (permalink)
BrandonS Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 2,663	At least it doesn't feature Mad Cat (burger and fries) on the intro track like the new Darkane does __________________ my portfolio \| instaidgrace \| rainwound

March 21st, 2009, 06:01 AM	#123 (permalink)
Ninfix Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bodo, North-Norway Posts: 369	Watershed kicks ass. The three growl-tracks are fantastic, real Opeth-level. The other 4 songs are ok. __________________ "Stubborn, mellow guy who likes fart." - Per Wiberg about Mikael Åkerfeldt

March 27th, 2009, 05:02 PM	#124 (permalink)
Kamel Trollhunter Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 432	After reading some of the posts, not all, I assume that Opeth represents a "girl" for you: you'd want it to be only what you liked, and you wouldn't let it grow emotionally. Opeth's not a picture of your best friends that you lose after leaving school. P.S: you know what i mean, right?

March 27th, 2009, 08:04 PM	#125 (permalink)
Daoloth The Render of Veils Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Miami, FL Posts: 3	Ok album not there best but it still has it's moments.