Heritage

Deluxe 180gm double vinyl LP pressing. 2011 album from the Swedish Metal band. Opeth's roots in the doom-laden shade of occult-infused Scandinavian Death Metal and dark romanticism are undeniable and will never elicit apology. But the transcendent emotional and melodic heights achieved on Heritage marks a new chapter in the storied quintet's career. Band leader, singer, guitarist, songwriter and long-running consistent member Mikael kerfeldt has reshaped the pathway forward for his artistic vehicle without sacrificing the hard won spiritualism of previous endeavors. This masterwork from the Stockholm, Sweden based virtuoso musicians is a mind-boggling dense maze of tempo shifts, off-time signatures, percussive experimentation and warped rhythms. It is all expertly melded together by a myriad range of emotional outpouring and breezy melodic optimism which soars above the songs like a woodland spirit surveying its forest. There are multiple hints of darkness but Heritage moves the band forward into broader dimensions.