Week 26: Opeth - Nectar

The artist: Opeth have become a big name in heavy metal over the last decade. Not only are they well established for the mixture of death metal, progressive rock and acoustic elements all in one, they made a breakthrough with Blackwater Park in 2001 which in ten years can already be seen as a classic metal record standing next to Rust in Peace, Paranoid, etc. Mikael Åkerfeldt has also become a big name for heavy metal musicians and with his death metal vocals passing back and fourth with clean singing, Even with a formula they've used since day one, Opeth have managed to make some twists and turns with the raw feel of the first two albums Orchid and Morningrise and the all-acoustic and no-metal Damnation (as well as possibly the upcoming album Heritage). Opeth's success has gone as far as putting them in a high class venue like the Royal Albert Hall which they had to make a live CD+DVD for and I feel proud to have seen that special show for them.

The album: Morningrise is the second Opeth album and still contains the raw sound production which Orchid had. Morningrise is very notable for having every song lasting at least ten minutes long minus the bonus demo track. Some may think these songs are long for the sake of long but this album is rich in quality, although Black Rose Immortal (the longest Opeth song to date) isn't a song for beginners. Songs such as Advent and To Bid You Farewell have become Opeth classics and one has to wonder why Mikael Åkerfeldt opposed this album at a later point. Morningrise may not be the most accessible Opeth album but it's still damn good.

The song: Nectar starts off with an interesting intro. Starting with drums then introducing the bass (which is crystal clear here) and then the guitars. The bass proves to be very useful here and is a prime example of how sound productions should be executed to make the bass audible. The song goes through changes throughout with an acoustic piece around 1:33 in which quickly goes back to the metal. There's another acoustic section six minutes in which contains a strong classical feel. It's an unpredictable move if you've not heard the song before and the acoustic section is a personal favourite for Opeth's acoustic elements. It's a very moving part that is favoured very well with the drums and the bass once again which is a huge plus.

There's so much to say about the musical structure in Nectar and the lyrics are just the icing on the cake. The song is a bout a huge negligence of love that is never spoken out to the significant other. Overall, Nectar is an excellent song from Opeth with great appreciation for the bass as well as showing some of the best acoustic pieces from the band. This song is one of many reasons why it's a close second to Blackwater Park.

Week 25: Saxon - Machine Gun

The artist: Saxon are one of many bands who were part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement in the late 70s/early 80s. Although they never had the critical acclaim Iron Maiden and Judas Priest had during their golden days, Saxon have managed to stick around since the formation of the band and have released 19 albums throughout their time and recently released Call to Arms. Saxon have their top hits with 747 (Strangers in the Night), Princess of the Night and Wheels of Steel. However, there is more to Saxon than that. Listen to Battalions of Steel from Into the Labyrinth and realise the great material Saxon have going beyond their classics. The later days of Saxon have a touch of power metal to their music and considering they have Charlie Bauerfeind for their sound producer (also the producer for Blind Guardian, Helloween and HammerFall, some of the biggest power metal bands out there), the slight change of direction is no big surprise.

The album: Wheels of Steel is part of the Saxon classic trio (Wheels of Steel, Strong Arm of the Law and Denim and Leather). Unfortunately, the lesser known songs don't stand out that well in the album barring one. With songs like 747 (Strangers in the Night), Motorcycle Man, Machine Gun and the title track, it's still an album worth hearing for traditional metal fans.

The song: Machine Gun kicks off with a short solo which is immediately ended by the killer speed riff for the song. This song is another fine example of ending off an album with a speed metal number. That's not all to the riffs, though as the vocal breaks show an even better riff that would go well with action movie sequences like bread and butter. When hearing this song, it's hard to not think of an Arnold Schwartzenegger or Sylvester Stallone action movie when listening to this part as well as the lyrics. The lyrics sound like Rambo going through an enemy base and doing what it takes to kill his enemies. Why hasn't this song been used in any action films? Overall, Machine Gun is one of Saxon's greatest songs for being the speed metal closer of the album and all around sounding like an ideal song for action films that make you want to go through a battlefield and start killing enemies like crazy yourself.

Week 24: Strapping Young Lad - Aftermath

The artist: Strapping Young Lad was Devin Townsend's heavier project. Devin Townsend's solo project has a diverse sound but SYL were more focused on their musical style. It's hard to define the band with a single metal subgenre but it's easy to describe them as "Heavy as a really heavy thing." SYL originally started off as a solo project by Devin Townsend as a response to all the bullshit in the music industry. Anger is a common theme in their music and those who don't like the nature of angst may get turned off by this but see it from a different perspective and see how the use of anger energizes music, especially Strapping Young Lad's works. The rage went on for five albums and disbanded a year after the release of The New Black due to Devin wanting to focus on his solo project only. Unfortunately, the return of Strapping Young Lad isn't likely for the time being but for now, let's look back on the great music Devin & co. played.

The album: SYL was a wind of change to the musical style of the band. The industrial elements heavily declined on this release as well as implementing stronger death and thrash metal influences. Devin Townsend's vocal range was more developed as well. In addition to the musical changes, the self-titled album feels more coherent than its predecessors and stands out as the most consistent release SYL had to offer. This album features eleven tracks that were written to kick some ass really hard! The sound ranges from high tempo tracks such as Relentless and Dirt Pride and slightly more complex structures with Bring on the Young, Aftermath and Force Fed. It's hard to make an album that sounds more pissed and enraged than this masterpiece.

The song: Aftermath starts off with some relentless drumming and makes it a really cool intro for the song. It also helps with the chugging riffs you hear around 40 seconds in and this has to be one of the finest examples of chugging riffs in heavy metal. It's very technical, heavy as a really heavy thing and very memorable. Even if chugging riffs aren't your thing, this song has at least a good riff of that kind. The drums are also insane but rhythmatic (wait, that isn't a word?). Unfortunately, not much can be said about the bass considering the sound production drowns the bass. The lyrics talk about war and using it in the name of religion as well as reflecting on recent wars at the time. For a song that's 6 1/2 minutes long, the lyrics are rather minimal. That's not a bad thing, though since the main focus on the album overall is the relentless instruments. Overall, Aftermath is one of the best songs as well as one of the most chaotic from Strapping Young Lad's self-titled album with technical chugging riffs, Devin's angrier tone and incredible drumming from Gene Hoglan.

Week 23: Bathory - Baptised in Fire and Ice

The artist: Bathory was a one man band held by Quorthon. Although the history of Bathory had other band members as well, it was mostly just Quorthon who played all the music. Bathory is highly praised for being a pioneer band for not only black metal but also viking metal. To be credited for being a huge influence in two genres is quite an achievement. Quorthon recorded many great releases with Bathory such as Blood Fire Death, Hammerheart, Twilight of the Gods and Blood on Ice. His later works were a planned Nordland quadrilogy. However, Quorthon only lived long enough to finish two of those albums. He died of a heart failure on 3rd June 2004 and it only makes sense for me to pay a tribute to Quorthon this week to remember him and his contribution to heavy metal.

The album: Hammerheart was released in 1990 and is one of the groundbreaking metal releases in 1990 along with Rust in Peace and Painkiller for its major contribution to viking metal. Hammerheart continues the path to move away the black/thrash metal sound the first few Bathory albums had and also maintains the more complex structures of songs Blood Fire Death boasts. Although Hammerheart is the most recognisable Bathory album, especially with One Rode to Asa Bay having a music video on MTV, it's hard to help but think one song doesn't get as much appreciation as the other songs. After all, it's one song the all-star tribute band Twilight of the Gods didn't play for the live shows or played the least.

The song: Baptised in Fire and Ice starts off with a catchy beat which is shortly followed by Quorthon's chants with "Fire and Ice". The chants in the song give off a great atmosphere and although it's not the only song that uses choirs and chants in Hammerheart, there's something about this song that has a stronger choir feel to it that's almost as good as what you hear in One Rode to Asa Bay. This song reflects rebirth and the early life of a viking who travels across the seas far away from home, traveling across snow and crossing through fire. The said viking also remembers these days later on in his life when he was baptised.

Baptised in Fire and Ice has mid-pace riffs that are heard throughout the album but from the guitar performance, the highlight has to be the solo halfway through the song. It lasts for a minute and even goes side by side with the choir which again, gives off a great atmosphere to the song and has to be one of the best moments in Hammerheart. Overall, Baptised in Fire and Ice is rather under appreciated and deserves more credit for the chilling choirs which even goes along with the solo for the song. It's not a song to skip when listening to this album.