Search - Opeth :: My Arms Your Hearse

An extraordinary piece of Art

Alexander Adamov | Chicago, IL USA | 09/13/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I do have every single Opeth CD and I must say that this one stands out as the most prolific and polished album from this band. It is flawlessly structured with harmonuous composition. It is very true as some previous reviewers have noted that the work is like a continuous story that has no logical gaps in between, a feeling that you get from other bands that undertake the standard approach of one song at a time. It has everything youu could crave for: the mellow sound along with the extremely effeective change of rythm, growling vocals that have never sounded so good anywhere else (may be Crematory's Just Dreaming is the only close contestant I can think of right now), excellent musical craftsmanship flowing from every note.



This is a gem in a genre where it is very hard to achieve the accord and consistency between vocals and instruments. Opeth is doing remarkable job pulling those seemingly opposite means in a coherent, very accessible I would say product that certanly cannot leave you indifferent. By the way Still Life was mentioned quite a bit. I have it and it is great piece but I still believe that My Arms Your Hearse is untouchable. I hope you would enjoy this masterpiece as much as I did."

Opeth is to Death as Pink Floyd is to Rock

Phillip Epps | 04/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album has a full cirlce feel to it. Constently changing sounds and amazingly blending it all together. Opeth seriously doesn't get enough, if any, American support from Media. Opeth is one of my favorite bands, and when it comes to talent, they are the most talented bands I've listened to in my entire life.



This album in alot of ways reminds me of Pink Floyd's the Wall, mainly because how everything flows. this is really good music to listen to while you are under the influence of random drugs, not lsd though because during the death like singing parts you'll start to see really strange stuff.



Get this Album."

Not so much "music", as it is an evocation of mood and image

Lone Isle | Sydney, Aus | 05/29/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This was my first Opeth purchase, and utterly shattered whatever pre-conceived notions I had of what "music" was.

Before I found this band, I was fed on radio rock and late night mtv which provided as extreme a avenue for heavy music as you could get without actually playing a solo or using more than 2 different types of song structure (read: evanescence/linkin park).

On hearing the praise bestowed on this band by frequenters of a forum I visited, I decided to download and check out some of their tracks.



Demon of the Fall was one the first tracks I heard from Opeth, and it was like an epiphany.



Unlike most others, this reviewer didn't get turned off at all by the vocal style. Rather, what captured my attention was the unrelenting, uncompromising way these guys played. To someone who had up till then never been exposed to black/death metal, this was like something I'd be searching for all along. I knew squat about anything non-mainstream then, and Opeth just happened to be my "gateway" band to metal, its sub-genres and all kinds of things musical that don't get air time on commerical radio.

Rather than lavishing endless praise on this band and coming off as something of a fanboy(I prolly already seems like it), I just want to briefly describe this complete new-comer's reaction to their kind of music, and in particular this album.



It is dense. It cares nothing for licks or choruses or catchy riffs/segments. If you were to close off all other sensory distractions, you could visualise the lush imagery and moods it conjures up, exactly what depending on the listener. Opeth is not something you pop in the stereo at a party for a good time with friends. It's something you sit alone in your room with, after closing the door, and REALLY fully immerse yourself into.



Again, they're by no means the only band that does this to me, but they were the first. If you have never heard of death metal, or if prior samples of it have sounded repugnant to you, I suggest you try out this band and/or this album. In a good way, this band and other quality death metal bands expose the rawer, darker sides of the emotional spectrum, and are just as good as other genres of music that typically sound upbeat."