Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

Better flow and tighter runtime is a guess on why they made that call but yeah it’s up to scratch

Album Rating: 5.0

I'm glad they didn't (even though I didn't hear the track yet, I presume it'll be great) because this album has a fucking fantastic flow and runtime. Long live tighter edits and 45 min albums

Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

Ouch



Based thread with patient fellas m/

Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

Its a solid bonus track but 48 minutes is a strength of this album

Album Rating: 5.0

The older I get the more I appreciate bands being able to filter out the chaff to deliver a better experience. Tool, Metallica and RHCP are some of the worst offenders (not that those bands have been particularly relevant for about 2 decades)



Feel the same about "director's cuts" or whatever edit of films that add another 30 mins, in 95% of the cases the movies didn't need the extra run time

Album Rating: 4.0

(though every and then you get a Watchmen that really needed it)

Enslaved - Hentai

Album Rating: 5.0

MoM - DaD

expected more from this ngl

Caravans To The Outer Worlds and Congelia go off, but a lot of these songs flounder and the production sounds as though every instrument was recorded directly into a DAW in a separate room and stitched together with minimal embellishment in the hope that it would somehow sound like a proppa metalsound. whole thing sounds clinical at best and flat at worst - no idea/don't care how it was actually made, but ugh yeah almost all these tracks need a live redemption

still ain't bad / good band, but eh not quite the one

Album Rating: 5.0 | Sound Off

That’s more my view on Isa, which is a great album but sounds like they were finding their footing engineering wise. The kick drum for that album sounds triggered. I find that everything after that, though, is generally very good/great for production. They have this really clear, mid heavy guitar tone which allows notes to ring out and the bass to fill out the lower register. A real contrast to Opeth, who dropped the gain and also the clarity in what I’d consider to be a very forced change of sound. The drums have a nice warm sound on this and his vocals are probably the best they’ve sounded, and certainly the best they’ve been mixed.



As for the bonus track, they actually slightly change the intro to Heimdal on the deluxe edition in order for Gangandi to flow seamlessly in to it. Love that track.

Album Rating: 5.0

. The drums have a nice warm sound on this and his vocals are probably the best they’ve sounded, and certainly the best they’ve been mixed.



couldn't agree more

Album Rating: 4.0

Gotta check that bonus track

Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

I get what jhonny said, but boy, you being able to listen acoustic guitars layered on heavy ones are chef's kiss. The synths also gives another touché. Clap clap for prod I would say. I wonder if we catch those little feats live.

Album Rating: 4.0

Been listening to this in one ear at work a lot and I'm pretty certain that as soon as I get high as shit and give it a proper listen in nice cans it's going to get bumped.

Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

"Been listening to this in one ear at work"



LMAO dude you re awesome

Album Rating: 4.0

"what I’d consider to be a very forced change of sound."



wtf is a forced change of sound?

Album Rating: 4.0

it's when you set the noise gate all the way up

Album Rating: 4.0

Gotta check that bonus track (2)

Album Rating: 5.0

Gotta check that bonus track [3]



being able to listen acoustic guitars layered on heavy ones are chef's kiss [2] - songs that do that in a tasteful way are some of my favorite metal songs ever

Album Rating: 5.0 | Sound Off

“wtf is a forced change of sound?”



@Flugmorph: If you watch the ‘making of’ video for Heritage, Mikael Åkerfeldt talks about the changes they made on that album and the reasons why he did it. Just dropping the gain, for what I’d consider to be a much inferior tone, comes across as a bit desperate, especially when you’re not doing anything remotely interesting or original with it. In the end, the overhaul sounds completely rote to me. There’s nothing natural about the way he implemented that new framework, which is why I think the new material just sounds like straight up bargain bin 70s homage, with all the edges dulled.