What if New Opeth Sounded Like Old Opeth? 100-Watt Ifs #1

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Better or worse in death metal?
The first in the new series kicks off with covering one of the most renowned progressive death metal bands in the world, and discussing their change in musical output over the last decade through the medium of a full band cover.
A more detailed version of the question would be - If we took one of their new songs, and converted it to their old sound, what would it sound like?
So that's exactly what I've tried to do here - 'Heart in Hand' which is a new release from their 2019 album 'In Cauda Venenum' but taken back about 15 years; with a production styling influenced by 'Watershed' and 'Deliverance', adding elements of death metal vocals, blast beats/double kicks, chugging guitars, a drop of tempo, and a more discordant/diminished guitar solo (provided by James Davies, who is an incredible professional session guitarist, check out his links below).
I decided to keep the acoustic end of the song the same, as I feel that if they did the song this way they wouldn't have changed this section personally.
DISCLAIMER
I would like to go ahead and say that Opeth are still putting out incredible music, and their latest album is one of my FAVOURITES of theirs. By doing this video, I am not in protest of their new sound, I fully support it and I am glad they are doing the music they want to do. I don't believe that my version in this video is better in any way to the original song.
The purpose of this video was to just have some fun, and ask a question that might scratch the itch of some fans of the band who might wonder the same. Conjecture! :)
I do not own any of this song, and it is not being monetised.
James Davies' Channel:
/ jamesd2004
/ jamesdaviesguitar
Gear:
DRUMS
Tama Starclassic B/B Performer Yesteryear
Tama SLP Big Black Steel Snare
Paiste Cymbals
GUITAR
Ibanez RGA32 w/ Bareknuckle Holy Diver Humbucker set.
BOSS Katana 50W Combo
2x SM57 mic placement with Fredman configuration
BASS
Spectre Legend 5
BIAS AMP + Sansamp DI
VOCALS
Audio Technica AE5400 Handheld Condenser Microphone
KEYBOARD
KORG microKEY
DB-33 organ
Addictive Keys Modern Upright PIano
PRODUCTION
Audient id44 + ASP800
Pro Tools
Windows 10
Challenge me in the comments! What would you like to ask next?

[@Zyborggian]

Now we don't have to wonder anymore given the new Opeth song lol

[@ahmedfaarooq2448]

Can u guys do the last 3 albums and call yrselfs OldOpeth

[@chook9256]

Oldpeth?

[@antoniocontolewn4460]

i love you....i agree 100% !!!!! do ittttt

[@pauljames9301]

Great call

[@pauljames9301]

OGpeth 😂

[@huseynaliyev5750]

This is a great idea, man! I will buy that album, for sure.

[@fmacauliffe]

Wow, this is very accurate. Mikael needs to see this.

[@Inflections]

Thank you! I hope he does.

[@ritualdeathmetal]

Now we want What if Old Opeth (My Arms, Your Hearse up to Watershed) sounded like Very Old Opeth (Orchid, Morningrise)

[@saidreysanchez163]

u mean young opeth lol

[@ritualdeathmetal]

@@saidreysanchez163 yeah kinda

[@Aphix_Music]

@@ritualdeathmetal Early Opeth, I think it would fit the better :D

[@daghetto101]

huh?? My Arms Your Hearse is part of Oldpeth. Basically Orchid and Morningrise, just themed album and shorter songs. Its also the 3 albums with bad recording and production.

[@im_in_immense_pain]

@@daghetto101no

[@tylerjacobson8012]

The songwriting is still there. People don’t realize that. The aesthetic and vocal delivery has been changed is all.

[@benjaminhoneycutt97]

1000%. Amazing how this could slide right into Watershed and it’d fit without an issue.

[@mylesaway2566]

Exactly!

[@Casmael01]

thing is the aesthetic and the delivery are extremely important

[@NPC-30]

Not true at all.

[@squeezy8414]

@@Casmael01 They are, and the new songs have good aesthetic and delivery, if it's just not your cup of tea it's just not your cup of tea there's nothing objectively worse about it compared to the old stuff, I know plenty of people who like both eras and prefer the newer stuff, it's just a stylistic change

[@_Henrique66]

Sounds like a Ghost Reveries unreleased track

[@mitcheldenhartog1886]

This needs so many more views

[@johnmcfall7]

Nice

[@pauljames9301]

True that! And subscribers too

[@Nonkel_Jef]

This is amazing. It makes me want to give new Opeth another shot. I'd love to hear Bleak, but with growls and clean vocals swapped.

[@max19970]

Man your growls are so clean, awesome

[@MrFritzinger]

This confirms my opinion, that in a compositional sense, Opeth's new stuff is not all that different from the earlier stuff. It's more of a production and arrangement issue. And yes, a growl-or-not issue.

[@hmminterestinginterestingi3023]

Not an issue, just a change

[@toprak3479]

2:56 That riff was pretty nasty on the original already but this...

[@DangerDMA]

What if Old Opeth sounded like New Opeth. Do a prog version of Deliverance lol

[@ramazgeradze3460]

Dude, Deliverance is Prog

[@luigibittencourt241]

bro, Deliverance is prog....

[@kalas-kurt]

@@ramazgeradze3460 progressive and prog isn't necessarily the same thing, prog can be, and traditionally were referring to the 70's way of doing things, which opeth is more about nowadays, rather than how they sounded on deliverance

[@Terminxman]

It is progressive..

[@CCDaDon15]

@@kalas-kurt hot take, Opeth isn't doing it in a 70s prog rock way at all. They're more 70s jazz fusion. Return to Forever adjacent.

[@Ivogrape]

Good job! Love both new and Opeth but 2:44 sounds like it was made for growls!

[@JarkMohnson]

I have to agree with everyone else. This is absolutely incredible. Your growls sound spot on dude!

[@Drumavarium]

I don't normally comment on stuff but dude, HOLY SHIT. The growls are uncanny, what the hell. This is perfection. Fucking insane man, bomb job.

[@Inflections]

Thank you man!

[@nietzscheente1271]

Mikael Akerfeld should listen to this. Just great work, the growls fits perfect.

[@Stoovey24]

I love all of Opeth's albums. In Cauda Venenum really isn't as much of a stretch as some people want to think. They have always been very dynamic. I love this new version of Heart in Hand. Keep it up!

[@abhishekchaubey903]

Heart in hand+Heir Apparent And not changing the last mixolydian part was also the most Opeth thing ever. Great work guys

[@geraltoftexas7631]

Strong Ghost Reveries and Watershed vibes

[@druid187]

this just make me miss old style opeth even more..... it's really not the guitar and drumming i have so much of a problem with but his style of clean vocals on the last few albums.. they seemed forced and trying to hard....thing is mikael naturally has such a beautiful sounding voice, it's just not necessary for him to bloat his vocals so much like he does now... this was brilliant! would love to hear more from this album done by you duders!

[@Meshuggapeth]

Let’s be honest, before Ghost Reveries, his cleans were weak. He can sing incredibly on ICV

[@druid187]

@@Meshuggapeth blackwater park is were his vocals were starting to polish..... damnation and ghost reveries is were his cleans were at the peak, and blackwater and deliverence is were his death vocals peaked... IMO of course lol

[@Meshuggapeth]

Thullin But Mikael’s best growls were on The Grand Conjuration, IMO, and the cleans on Damnation were great but still lacking the confidence Mikael started to enjoy on Ghost Reveries

[@cedricflattery4287]

the 'prog-' albums are pretentious nothingness.... and his crooning and sighing and chuckling is unbearable like a David Coverdale karaoke-night

[@druid187]

@@cedricflattery4287 i don't agree with the nothingness bit, because i truly believe mikael is still writing and creating what he sincerely believes is good music.... but he sure is going a very pretentious route with it all. i mean when you compare songs so well composed as deliverence,bleak, harlequin forest, moonlapse virgo

[@tamhewitt-baker5602]

I grew up with Opeth and honestly this really is a superb homage to the band. The whole sound is very coherent and whoever mixed it really knows what they are doing. Well done on all fronts. edit - Mikael needs to see this!

[@Inflections]

Thank you very much, I did the mix also :) unfortunately KZbin seems to have somehow crapped on the quality, so look out for a link to a higher quality upload in the next couple of days!

[@MilleniumMaiden]

This is incredible work! I love new Opeth as much as the old Opeth, but this is something I didn't know I needed in my life. Now I want to hear the inverse, one of their old songs in their prog style. Anyways, kudos, dude! Can't wait to see what you do next.

[@danielg6996]

I dont understand how people can like both, you probably have a tumor or something.

[@hyalinamusic18]

@@danielg6996 I don't understand how people can't accept other people having differing opinions

[@AceofTunes]

Frellin incredible! Ugh😍 I am craving the whole albums done like this!

[@Inflections]

Thank you, I would love to have the time 😅

[@AceofTunes]

@@Inflections If only! I can't even imagine how much work went into this one alone!

[@lordgraga]

This was absolutely great! I'm so impressed by your growls, they are spot on!

[@HeleusHere]

Never thought someone can perfectly replace the sound of Opeth making it better

[@marksantana2059]

Bro. This is incredible.. well done.

[@Rick2k2k]

pretty damn cool. I think the coolest part was the growls during the "war in utopia" part. Had a stank face going on!

[@Killerman551]

Sounds like deliverance mixed with watershed such an amazing mix 😎

[@jeffmoppi]

Absolutely brilliant. You are my new favorite KZbinr.

[@Inflections]

Thank you so much :) lots more to come!

[@jeffmoppi]

@@Inflections I'll even hit the goddamn notification bell.

[@mqro1915]

Everything about this is spot on. Seriously, I'd think Opeth was your solo project if I didn't know, from the growls especially. I know this series isn't exclusively an old vs new comparison of bands but I'd love to see an episode on Paradise Lost, Katatonia, Ulver, Leprous etc. as they've all gone through major changes.

[@Inflections]

Some interesting ideas here! Something to ponder on...

[@jonathanbutcher8178]

Please, please do more of these, man. Fantastic work.

[@SenseiJosh]

Great video! For me it was never really a matter of death metal or no death metal, it was all about atmosphere and tone. For example, Damnation has a great bleak atmosphere that fits in with old Opeth, no heaviness needed! The new stuff just sounds way too... "happy" ...for lack of a better term, especially in Mikael's voice. You did a great job translating this song into a different genre, but I think the song itself is just written in a way that still doesn't fit in with their classic stuff. This version sounds a lot like watershed and could fit right into that album, which makes sense because I feel like Watershed was missing most of that Opeth atmosphere as well,. Anyways, hope I'm not coming across as if I'm bashing you lol, just wanted to share my thoughts on how I hear Opeth's music, lovely rendition and would love to hear some stuff from pale Communion!

[@Nonkel_Jef]

That's also my problem with new Opeth. It seems to lack emotion. It's just a bunch of nice proggy riffs strung together, but it somehow can't captivate me like their older work.

[@Inflections]

Thank you for the thoughtful comment, discussions like this are exactly what I started doing the series for. I agree that there's a tonal shift in songwriting since their earlier albums but I personally believe that when stripped of the elements that make it death metal or progressive rock, it's not much different as a song to their earlier stuff :)

[@SenseiJosh]

Inflections true true, I don’t know I just kind of expect more out of them ya know? Like they are my favorite band of all time and it sucks seeing them just drop like 6/10 albums :/ Although Pale Communion is an amazing album!!!

[@cedricflattery4287]

@@Nonkel_Jef good point ... strung together... watreshed was strung together and many many empty AAAAAAs but it worked, just barely...

[@caseyn908]

This is truly amazing work. Breath of Fresh air to hearing growls Incorporated with the new music. Great work

[@kb0]

i smell it

[@ezackulation]

I subscribed so I can listen to more Opeth covers. You're doing great work by covering their new songs into Oldpeth. Please continue your fantastic work, more people need to listen to this!

[@Inflections]

Thank you, I have an older cover of The Lotus Eater if you check out the Full Band Covers Season 1 playlist :) there might be more Opeth in the future!

[@ezackulation]

@@Inflections Absolutely! Thanks for letting me know you have more already.

[@Allen7]

oooh man, adding death vocals makes this song 100 times better....

[@cdfox85]

I want to hear every opeth song from the past four albums like this.

[@nicolascampos8450]

Akerfeldt should DEFINETLY listen to this. Amazing

[@duolcoiram3557]

I love how the tone is very Watershed. It sounds like Opeth if they picked up right from their last death record.

[@viktoredsjo6867]

Holy shit, didn't realize this was Geeorj when it popped up in my recommended. Used to listen to all your stuff a few years ago! And this was really great. The low grows really hit home with the old school Opeth style! I like new Opeth, so I don't feel like it's a competition, but it's really interesting to hear sort of what could have been. Thanks for this!

[@huzidamasta]

This is absolutely incredible. That growl is exactly like mikael. This version's just better. It's that simple. I still prefer their pre heritage stuff more in terms of the actual songs, but this is closer to being on par than the real version is.

[@Inflections]

Thank you so much dude!

[@dizzedahmer]

This is the superior version! And your growls sound just like his!

[@arekturus]

I feel kind of stupid, cause I really do appreciate new Opeth. But this is awesome.

[@Opranius]

First of all, great work on the drums! Didn't like the lotus-eater-like blast beats in the beginning, don't really fit in the previous part. The parts after that are great! Really like the idea where you placed the growl-parts - I was thinking about experimenting with newer Opeth songs mixing them with growls aswell but you already did this job fully justice! Best wishes, Julian.

[@aerahtv0000]

i miss heavy Opeth in my life so much. thank you

[@osalbaro]

Amazing how you brought the old atmosphere back. The intro reminds me of 'bleak' a bit. But I agree with a comment below, I don't think blast beats are part of Opeth's sound. I can only think of The Lotus Eater using them.

[@fcamiola]

Great work here...super impressive. I'll be the lone voice of dissention though and state that I love Opeth the way it is....I wouldn't trade MA's clean vocals here....the growl era is over and that's cool with me. However, your growls are actually stronger than Mikael's these days - a voice can't be expected to do that forever, its just not possible. Cheers from a fellow Opethian.

[@ThomatoForce]

Really well done! Kudos to the production as well, you really nailed the Opeth sound

[@Inflections]

Thank you!

[@marcinpraszkiewicz3966]

Mikael had the most beautiful type of growl - monstrous, hellish, yet you could understand every word. And combining them with cleans made it really special for me. Your rendition was absolutely gorgeous. Thank you Do you know any bands that have similar tone and range of growls? Only one that I know is Convulsing

[@DangerDMA]

“The Decision” by the Reticent. “Tyranny of Imagination” by Wilderun Hope you enjoy

[@marcinpraszkiewicz3966]

@@DangerDMA I love you so much

[@LordSkunk707]

Was about to recommend Wilderun. Glad to see someone already has. Very Opethy.

[@Izztana666]

Awesome......simply....awesome.........really miss the old Opeth😢😢😢.....anyway these guys are seriously highly talented musicians...superb musicianship...👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@adriansalinas1862]

You should make “if old Opeth sounded like older Opeth”

[@mattchew7157]

This just makes the feel of the newer album so much better

[@LarsGoldbachDP]

Mind blowing! Vocal delivery is absolutely top notch. Especially the growls are so Åkerfeldt-esque

[@benhemsworth8555]

This really makes it apparent that they haven’t changed all that much. Especially the fact that you didn’t change the clean section at the end at all, just a really heartfelt cover of it. Respect man.

[@ILQA1]

This was the most impressive thing I've seen in a long long time. Absolutely stellar job man! Here you show that the songwriting on Mikael is still there, it's just, let's say, buried under a new style

[@JasonSmithPsychedelicTherapist]

No. Your version in this video is WAY WAY better. Way. Oh my. So much better. Thank you.

[@BlackSailPass_GuitarCovers]

Love the addition of blastbeats.

[@weirddreams_fe]

2:56 is the best part. Something like watershed era.

[@derekd.4156]

When the song started I was like, ok, nice. Then the vocals kicked in and I knew I stumbled upon something special

[@jamespeterson1630]

I like that you threw blasts in there I always wish they had more time with Axe in the super heavy era so it wasn't JUST Wreath live and Lotus

[@Drazuric]

Fuck! This is sooooooo good! I miss the old opeth! Tremendous work! Thank you for this!

[@geraltoftexas7631]

If this is what new Opeth sounded like they wouldn't have stopped being my favorite band.

[@Stoovey24]

I like new and old Opeth. It's all great.

[@lostsoul2894]

Yeah they New stuff its kind lame

[@Stoovey24]

@@lostsoul2894 it's not lame at all. You just don't appreciate it.

[@lostsoul2894]

@@Stoovey24 eh you know what a opinion means

[@mrlarvux]

If Opeth went this autopilot I would lose so much respect for the band.

[@DiolodN]

that is awesome ! i like the transformation to death metal ...i also like the original song too but that was a great cover

[@Therionx]

That was great ! Well done :)

[@joelchurchill6297]

This is such a welcome edition, really good growls, I like both eras but damn this remake is so cool

[@agustinperera7244]

OMG broooo, awesome!!! I miss old Opeth.

[@sarabattiston4738]

Man, wow. IT'S AMAZING!!!! Great job! Miss old Opeth even more now!

[@forsaken.cowboy]

Fuck this is awesome. Someone needs to show this to Mike.

[@FacePomagranate]

I like how the acoustic section is basically the same, but with fewer keyboards.

[@HeadbangerSinHair]

I think you overdid the blast beats, it didn't feel like an Opeth element but I know you had to combine it with the death metal sound they had; overall it is good. Anyway, this is exactly the Opeth sound I want from Mikael, it's ok if he doesn't growl anymore but this is the sound that Opeth needs. Heaviness, heavy metal combined with their prog rock sound. You guys don't know how much I want a heavy progressive metal album from Opeth. You nailed the sound man, thank you so much for this. You put into a song what I've been thinking for the past few years, thank you so much!

[@IveGotAMatch]

Dude, this is fantastic. PLEASE do Moon Above, Sun Below! I've always thought that the section near the end after the big ambient gap has so much potential, but would be WAY better with more of a Beneath the Mire/Harlequin Forest outro vibe (particularly the drums, which have way too little going on in the 'gaps' when it kicks in at 7:24).

[@TKRepository]

Sure wish they'd actually go back to this style. Solid work dude.

[@Inflections]

Thank you man!

[@psychobeef5176]

This is so close to what it would probably sound like. Knowing Mikael, he would throw some shit at you.

[@AlenBrkic1]

Omg bro, i am sad and happy at the same time. This was great!

[@azrelius]

You are my hero!!!, I was thinking of making a death metal version of cusp of eternity, But man this is so good, so fresh, so amazing, so catchy, if you make a version of cusp of eternity, I would feel complete :)

[@mylesaway2566]

JIZZ!

[@Inflections]

Thank you dude!

[@ZedUndead13]

I can’t stop listening to this. It’s absolute perfection! Thank you for this!!!

[@666bjindra]

WOW!!! Thank you for this ...

[@rouxmain64]

wow, impressive. I loved the experiment.

[@duskstan.8827]

Dude! What I never thought I needed so much to hear!

[@wilderunthejewels4935]

Transformed a good song into a masterpiece. Incredible.

[@joaocassimiro8911]

I love Opeth, Both of Eras, but it's sound incredible 🤘🏻

[@TheAcousticgrace]

This is painfully underrated... BRILLIANTLY executed

[@progrockplaylists]

this is a blessing

[@indocesare14]

Bro really maxed all his stats

[@castiel7330]

Thank you for doing this

[@thielenismo9657]

A lot better! Sensacional display, congrats

[@ragunathtikiri480]

Would love to hear you do a similar thing with Sorceress!

[@altmm20]

Drapery Falls In Style of In Cauda

[@pad-dydrummer5929]

Apart from the growls in corners - loved t he super mellow ending as well! 💖🙌🏻

[@acousticguitarcreations3740]

Your growls sound more like old Opeth than mike's current growl's, also superb performance!

[@Shanehuff1971]

Omg your a Genius! 🤟🏻absolutely love this! I’m a huge Opeth fan and this is amazing! Very talented my man! Keep pumping these out please! Michael would be impressed!

[@matycee]

that kit is mic'ed really well. sounds great

[@jonasszymanski4183]

gawd, my ears never pleased anything so well made

[@xStarWarsFreakx]

Please, for the love of god, more of this. I love this experiment.

[@007nikster2]

Absolutely amazing work!! I hope to see another "what if" of Opeth's newer music from you!

[@casajaguar_tarija]

Perfect job bro! Your growls are amazing! Cheers from Bolivia, Southamerica

[@EarlOfBassington]

i foresee a long series of successful videos. outstanding

[@ashwalk85]

This was fantastic!!! just a little observation if you will: Mikael didn't normally alternate between clean and growls that fast, it was more like long sections of each. Also, Blast beats wasn't Lopez's thing, he rarely used it. Certainly it's up Axe's alley.

[@Inflections]

Thank you! Interesting observations too, I agree with the alternating too quickly - with the conjecture of doing this I allowed there to be slightly different changes of style as a band would with every record. With the drums I took a lot of influence from Axenrot especially from 'Heir Apparant' and 'The Lotus Eater' :)

[@ashwalk85]

@@Inflections yeah, I see what you mean! The result is awesome \m/

[@gmyersgilmer9470]

Simply not true, listen to Deliverance and the moments of back and forth quickly vox will become "apparent"

[@basti6sic817]

you make an amazing transformation of the new songs, keep it up!!

[@wastenone6571]

Amazing job! Thank for for taking to the to treat the world with this interpretation. The world needs Opeth. My challenge to you is to just do more Opeth anything. Cheers!

[@Inflections]

My pleasure! Thank you