Opeth's Pale Communion - 70s Road Trip Anyone?
AsSiMiLaTeD
Posts: 11,728
I've had a chance to listen to the new album a couple times this week and thought I'd mention it here and share some quick impressions.
Sound Quality
This is another collaboration with Steven Wilson, and as a result the mix and sound quality on this album are top notch. It has very good dynamic range, drums and guitars sound like they should, it's just an overall great sounding album. I wouldn't call this a reference album in the way something like Patricia Barber's Cafe Blue is, but for a rock album of this genre the recording is excellent.
For General Music Fans
If you love that classic 70s prog rock sound from groups like Deep Purple, Rainbow, King Crimson, etc then I'd recommend you give this album a listen as it's similar in many ways to the best of those albums. Opeth certainly has their own take on that sound, but I think that fans of that genre will like this album.
For Opeth Fans
Like Heritage, this album features only clean vocals, no growls. By comparison though this album has more heavy elements, is more melodic and just more cohesive to me overall. Heritage eventually grew on me and I like that album a lot, but I already prefer this newer album. Ultimately this album is still not the Opeth from Ghost Reveries or Blackwater Park with the balance of clean vocals and growls, those albums had a sense of dynamic sound created by the varying styles that this album lacks. That being said, this is still a fantastic album and probably my third favorite behind those two.
Enjoy!
Sound Quality
This is another collaboration with Steven Wilson, and as a result the mix and sound quality on this album are top notch. It has very good dynamic range, drums and guitars sound like they should, it's just an overall great sounding album. I wouldn't call this a reference album in the way something like Patricia Barber's Cafe Blue is, but for a rock album of this genre the recording is excellent.
For General Music Fans
If you love that classic 70s prog rock sound from groups like Deep Purple, Rainbow, King Crimson, etc then I'd recommend you give this album a listen as it's similar in many ways to the best of those albums. Opeth certainly has their own take on that sound, but I think that fans of that genre will like this album.
For Opeth Fans
Like Heritage, this album features only clean vocals, no growls. By comparison though this album has more heavy elements, is more melodic and just more cohesive to me overall. Heritage eventually grew on me and I like that album a lot, but I already prefer this newer album. Ultimately this album is still not the Opeth from Ghost Reveries or Blackwater Park with the balance of clean vocals and growls, those albums had a sense of dynamic sound created by the varying styles that this album lacks. That being said, this is still a fantastic album and probably my third favorite behind those two.
Enjoy!
Comments
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I was going to get around to posting my views about the CD but you summed it up quite nicely and your opinion is similar to mine. I've gotten a little disappointed lately by Dream Theater's sound quality but Opeth's latest venture really fills the void. Just a great CD all around.TV: 65" Samsung QLED 4K
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A few of the DT albums are now on HDTracks with a bit better dynamics than the CDs, but nothing they've releasesd in the last ten years or so has really good sound quality.
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AsSiMiLaTeD wrote: »A few of the DT albums are now on HDTracks with a bit better dynamics than the CDs, but nothing they've releasesd in the last ten years or so has really good sound quality.
Why do you think that is? I've always figured that because there are so many "notes" going on at the same time that everything is stepping on everything else. Especially the keyboards and all the effects. It's a shame because they are so talented.
TV: 65" Samsung QLED 4K
Fronts: Energy RC70 --- Center: Energy RC-LCR
Front Heights: Polk RC65i --- Rears: Polk RC85i --- Sub: Power Sound Audio XS15
Pioneer VSX-1120K --- Parasound HCA-1000A --- Oppo BDP-103
Vincent Audio SA31 preamp --- Teac UD301 DAC
AIYIMA Tube T7 preamp --- Nobsound 12AX7 tube preamplifier -
That may come into play with the mix itself, but having a guitar solo at the same time doesn't make cymbals sound splashy...
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Given more time, I'm 'upgrading' my opinion on this album to ":Highly Recommended for music fans".
I got around to the Blu Ray version of this album last night. The 5.1 mix is a lisle disappointing given the lack of bass, but the high resolution stereo track is superb. This is right up there with the really good Porcupine Tree DVD-A discs as some of the best sounding rock music available.
I just picked up on another aspect of this album that's subtle yet very important - it's a progressive album that's very accessible to a mainstream audience. It's difficult to make music that's both progressive and listenable for a wider audience because those two elements usually end up being mutually exclusive, but Opeth has pulled it off with this release.
They're not going to be drawing in people from the mainstream pop crowd, but this is listenable enough that your typical Metallica / Foo Fighters / Soundgarden fans can get on board. Likewise this album probably won't appeal as much to the super proggy fans who count notes or tempo changes or give extra credit for excessive use of obscure chords, but it's still involved enough for most prig rock fans.
