''Blackwater Park'' is the fifth studio album by Swedish
progressive metal
Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad :Fusion music genres, fusion music genre melding heavy metal music, heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified electric guitar, guitar-driven s ...
band
Opeth
Opeth is a Swedish progressive metal/rock band from Stockholm, formed in 1990 by lead vocalist David Isberg. The group has been through several personnel changes, including the replacement of every original member; notably Isberg in 1992. Mikael ...
. It was released on March 12, 2001 in Europe and a day later in North America through
Music for Nations
Music For Nations (MFN) is a British independent record label focusing mainly on rock and metal. It was a subsidiary of the larger label distributor Zomba Records, which was a division of BMG and later Sony Music Entertainment.
Launched in 1 ...
and
Koch Records
MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch", formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had b ...
.
The album marks the first collaboration between
Porcupine Tree
Porcupine Tree are an English rock band formed by musician Steven Wilson in 1987. During an initial career spanning more than twenty years, they earned critical acclaim from critics and fellow musicians, developed a cult following, and became ...
frontman
Steven Wilson
Steven John Wilson (born 3 November 1967) is an English musician. He is the founder, guitarist, lead vocalist and songwriter of the rock band Porcupine Tree, as well as being a member of several other bands, including Blackfield, Storm Corrosio ...
and the band, as Wilson had been brought in to produce the album. This contributed to a shift in Opeth's musical style. The songs "The Drapery Falls" and "Still Day Beneath the Sun" were released as singles.
Although ''Blackwater Park'' did not chart in North America or the United Kingdom, it was a commercial breakthrough for the band and is often considered their
magnum opus
A masterpiece, ''magnum opus'' (), or ''chef-d’œuvre'' (; ; ) in modern use is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, ...
. The album was highly acclaimed among critics, with Eduardo Rivadavia of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
stating that the album is "surely the band's coming-of-age album, and therefore, an ideal introduction to its remarkable body of work.” In 2020, ''
Loudwire
''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...
'' listed ''Blackwater Park'' as the number one progressive metal album of all time. ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' ranked the album as 55th on their list of 'The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time.'
Production
Following a few live dates in Europe, Opeth's guitarist and vocalist
Mikael Åkerfeldt
Lars Mikael Åkerfeldt (; born 17 April 1974)[Mikael Åkerfeldt](_blank)
, Op ...
went to an old friend's house in
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
, Sweden, to record some demos and develop ideas for the new album.
The album is named after the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...
band of the
same name and was the first album for which the group had a title before they started recording.
This album featured heavy input from
Porcupine Tree
Porcupine Tree are an English rock band formed by musician Steven Wilson in 1987. During an initial career spanning more than twenty years, they earned critical acclaim from critics and fellow musicians, developed a cult following, and became ...
frontman
Steven Wilson
Steven John Wilson (born 3 November 1967) is an English musician. He is the founder, guitarist, lead vocalist and songwriter of the rock band Porcupine Tree, as well as being a member of several other bands, including Blackfield, Storm Corrosio ...
, whose relationship with Opeth had begun in the past when an interviewer, who was a friend of Åkerfeldt's and knew the latter was a fan of Wilson's work, gave Wilson a copy of Opeth's then-latest release
''Still Life'', which Wilson ended up liking so much that he contacted Åkerfeldt about it. A few months after the making of the demos, Åkerfeldt was having dinner with Wilson in which the two discussed the idea of Wilson producing the next Opeth album.
After Åkerfeldt sent Wilson the demos he had recorded, Wilson agreed to produce the album.
Opeth entered
Studio Fredman to begin work on ''Blackwater Park'' on August 10, 2000.
The band had no previous lyrics written and had only rehearsed three times before entering the studio.
The band's
engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...
Fredrik Nordström
Björn Tom Fredrik Nordström (born 5 January 1967) is a Swedish musician and record producer, best known as the guitarist of heavy metal band Dream Evil. Nordström is one of the leading melodic death metal and power metal producers in Sweden ...
had arranged for the group to stay in a small room in the studio that had four beds. Opeth stayed there for around two weeks and then later rented out
Dark Tranquillity member
Mikael Stanne
Bengt Mikael Stanne (born 20 May 1974) is a Swedish musician, best known as the vocalist and one of the lyricists (as well as a former rhythm guitarist) for the Swedish melodic death metal band Dark Tranquillity. Since the departure of origina ...
's flat. After recording the basic drums, rhythms, bass and acoustic guitars, Wilson arrived to produce the clean vocals and add some guitar leads. Åkerfeldt wrote that Wilson had an "immense impact on the recording" and after working with him the group entered "a new phase".
Åkerfeldt described the recording of the album as "rather smooth".
Soilwork
Soilwork is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Helsingborg. They are signed to Nuclear Blast. Formed in late 1995 by Björn Strid and Peter Wichers, originally under the name ''Inferior Breed'', the band changed their name in late 1996 to S ...
was recording in the studio at the same time as Opeth.
Åkerfeldt wrote that Opeth felt like "a bunch of amateurs in comparison. They were working all the time. When they came into the kitchen for a break, we're still there, on the same break we took 3 hours ago. We don't want this to become a 'job', or something you do because you have to. We wanna have a good time, and thus we only work when it feels right."
Release
''Blackwater Park'' was originally released on March 12, 2001 in Europe and a day later in North America.
This was the first Opeth album to be released in North America at the same time as it was in the rest of the world.
It has been released on compact disc and
vinyl record
A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...
formats.
A special edition of ''Blackwater Park'' was issued in 2002 with a bonus second disc that included "Still Day Beneath the Sun" and "Patterns in the Ivy II".
Those two bonus tracks were released together as a vinyl-only 7" EP by Robotic Empire Records in February 2003. The limited edition EP sold out in less than 24 hours and continues to be one of Opeth's most sought-after releases to date. Two singles were also released to promote ''Blackwater Park''. A shortened radio edit version of "The Drapery Falls" was released as a promo single.
The bonus track "Still Day Beneath the Sun" was later released as a
vinyl
Vinyl may refer to:
Chemistry
* Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer
* Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation
* Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry
* Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl m ...
only single.
''Blackwater Park'' did not chart in the United States or United Kingdom.
As of May 2008, ''Blackwater Park'' has sold over 93,000 copies in the United States.
On March 29, 2010, Opeth re-released a Legacy Edition of ''Blackwater Park'' which included a live version of "The Leper Affinity" and then a second DVD which is the entire album in 5.0 Surround Sound and a making of documentary. This version was released in North America in April 2012 by
The End Records
The End Records is a record label in Manhattan that specializes in rock, heavy metal, indie, and electronic music.
Early years (1998–2005)
The End Records was founded by Andreas Katsambas in Pasadena, California, with the goal of helping ...
.
Critical reception
''Blackwater Park'' received critical acclaim upon release. Eduardo Rivadavia of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
wrote that the album was "a work of breathtaking creative breadth" and noted the album's critical praise stating that "not since the release of
Tiamat
In Mesopotamian religion, Tiamat ( akk, or , grc, Θαλάττη, Thaláttē) is a primordial goddess of the sea, mating with Abzû, the god of the groundwater, to produce younger gods. She is the symbol of the chaos of primordial creati ...
's groundbreaking masterpiece ''
Wildhoney'' in 1994 had the extreme metal scene witnessed such an overwhelming show of fan enthusiasm and uniform critical praise as that bestowed upon Blackwater Park.” He also said that the album is "surely the band's coming-of-age album, and therefore, an ideal introduction to its remarkable body of work.”
''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...
'' praised the album, writing that "Blackwater Park has the reputation it does in large part because none of the songs follow the same songwriting formula, instead looking toward variations within general themes that all build to a dramatic conclusion in the title track." Opeth was compared to critically acclaimed groups from previous eras. ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
'' wrote in their review of the album, that "Opeth paint on an epic canvas, sounding at times like... metal's answer to '70s
King Crimson
King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...
".
''
CMJ
CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events and online media company, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music Monthly'' and ''CMJ New Music Report''. Th ...
'' also wrote a very positive review calling the album "Godlike ... a metal fusion of
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
and
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
".
The Canadian music magazine ''
Exclaim!
''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...
'' wrote that the album "might be the best metal record this year, and it is worth every bit of energy the band has put into the creating of it.”
''
Decibel
The decibel (symbol: dB) is a relative unit of measurement equal to one tenth of a bel (B). It expresses the ratio of two values of a power or root-power quantity on a logarithmic scale. Two signals whose levels differ by one decibel have a po ...
'' wrote that "Blackwater Park’s brilliance is the production. Co-produced by Opeth and Wilson and engineered by Fredrik Nordström, it’s one of the first death metal albums to feel, well, different. Crystal clear, yet resolutely heavy, Blackwater Park is also full of nuance." Similarly, ''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...
'' noted that Wilson's "production help and encouragement teased out the band's explorations of acoustic-led arrangements as much as electric ones while further showcasing Åkerfeldt's sweet, clear singing as much as the roars on songs like "The Leper Affinity" and the title track."
British magazine ''
Record Collector
''Record Collector'' is a British monthly music magazine. It was founded in 1980 and distributes worldwide.
History The early years
The first standalone issue of ''Record Collector'' was published in March 1980, though its history stretches ba ...
'' called ''Blackwater Park'' Opeth's finest hour and added that much of the credit "can be attributed to the advanced vision of Steven Wilson."
''
Loudwire
''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...
'' ranked ''Blackwater Park'' as the 15th best metal album of all time, claiming the album reflected the group's "70s art-rock influences, supported by consistently intricate, wildly imaginative nine-to-ten-minute epics, each one more awe-inspiring than the last."
A more mixed review came from Alex Silveri of
Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...
, who praised several of the album's songs but wrote negatively about "The Drapery Falls", "Dirge for November" and "The Funeral Portrait", which Silveri referred to as "boring to the point of tears.”
However, Sputnikmusic still placed ''Blackwater Park'' at No. 39 on its list of the Top 100 Albums of the Decade.
Accolades
In 2020, ''Loudwire'' listed ''Blackwater Park'' as the number one progressive metal album of all time. It was
Metal Storm
Metal Storm Limited was a research and development company based in Brisbane, Australia, that specialized in electronically initiated superposed load weapons technology and owned the proprietary rights to the electronic ballistics technolog ...
's number 1 album of 2001 and number 4 on the Top 200 albums of all time. ''
LA Weekly
''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin, who served as president and editor until 1991. Voice Media Group sold the paper in late 2017 to Semanal Media LLC, whose paren ...
'' named it the 5th best metal album in history. ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' ranked ''Blackwater Park'' as 55th on their list of 'The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time.
In 2009,
MetalSucks
MetalSucks is a heavy metal music-themed news website. The site features reviews, interviews, information on latest metal releases and blog-like posts from the writers, most notably Vince Neilstein and Axl Rosenberg.
History
The site was foun ...
compiled a list of the "21 Best Metal Albums of the 21st Century So Far" based on the opinions of various musicians, managers, publicists, label representatives and writers, where ''Blackwater Park'' ranked at No. 3 on the list.
''
Decibel
The decibel (symbol: dB) is a relative unit of measurement equal to one tenth of a bel (B). It expresses the ratio of two values of a power or root-power quantity on a logarithmic scale. Two signals whose levels differ by one decibel have a po ...
'' magazine similarly named ''Blackwater Park'' the 3rd best metal album of the decade. The album was listed at No. 5 on ''
Terrorizer
Terrorizer is an American grindcore band formed in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. After disbanding, its members gained recognition by playing in influential extreme metal bands, such as Morbid Angel ( David Vincent, Pete Sandoval), Napalm D ...
s best albums of the 2000s.
In June 2015, ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' ranked ''Blackwater Park'' at 28th place for their list of "Greatest Prog Rock Albums of All Time".
TeamRock
''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form a ...
placed the album at #36 on their "Top 100 Prog Albums of All Time" list.
In 2012, ''Loudwire'' listed the title track as the second best metal song of the 21st century. ''
Q'' magazine included ''Bleak'' in its 2004 list of "1010 Songs You Must Own!"
Track listing
Personnel
Opeth
*
Mikael Åkerfeldt
Lars Mikael Åkerfeldt (; born 17 April 1974)[Mikael Åkerfeldt](_blank)
, Op ...
– vocals, guitar, acoustic guitar
*
Peter Lindgren – guitar
*
Martín Méndez
Martín Méndez (born April 6, 1978, in Montevideo, Uruguay) is a Uruguayan Swedish bassist of progressive death metal band Opeth and second longest serving member of the band, behind lead vocalist, songwriter and guitarist Mikael Åkerfeldt ...
– bass
*
Martin Lopez Martin may refer to:
Places
* Martin City (disambiguation)
* Martin County (disambiguation)
* Martin Township (disambiguation)
Antarctica
* Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land
* Port Martin, Adelie Land
* Point Martin, South Orkney Islands
Austra ...
– drums
Additional musicians
*
Steven Wilson
Steven John Wilson (born 3 November 1967) is an English musician. He is the founder, guitarist, lead vocalist and songwriter of the rock band Porcupine Tree, as well as being a member of several other bands, including Blackfield, Storm Corrosio ...
– clean and backing vocals on "Bleak", "Harvest", "The Funeral Portrait", and "The Drapery Falls", piano, additional guitar, record producer,
engineering
Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...
,
mixing
* Markus Lindberg –
egg shaker
An egg shaker or ganzá is a hand percussion instrument, in the idiophone category, that makes a noise when shaken. Functionally it is similar to a maraca. Typically the outer casing or container is ovoidal or egg-shaped. It is partially full ...
s
Production
* Opeth – production, engineering, mixing, artwork
*
Fredrik Nordström
Björn Tom Fredrik Nordström (born 5 January 1967) is a Swedish musician and record producer, best known as the guitarist of heavy metal band Dream Evil. Nordström is one of the leading melodic death metal and power metal producers in Sweden ...
– engineering, mixing
* Göran Finnberg –
mastering
Additional personnel
* Harry Välimäki – photography
*
Travis Smith – artwork
Charts
Weekly
Monthly
References
*
External links
''Blackwater Park''at the official Opeth website
{{Authority control
Opeth albums
2001 albums
Albums recorded at Studio Fredman
E1 Music albums
Albums with cover art by Travis Smith (artist)