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This tour was primed to be a Swedish metal onslaught… combine the dire, bleak sound from opener Katatonia with the melodic, progressive power of Opeth, and you have a tour combo made in Heav… um… Hades…

Katatonia played about an hour… I was jonesin’ for some thrash, and was initially disappointed by their slower, doom metal sound.  It grew on me by the end, but knowing that Opeth’s Mikael Akerfeldt wasn’t breaking out the growls for this Heritage tour, I felt a little slighted…

Well, that, and the mix-up in the “photo pass situation“… all I was able to get was a few iPhone shots of Opeth.

Opeth went on around 9:45pm and led off with the opening song from their latest album, Heritage.  Mikael’s lyrics are almost always poetic, but sometimes straight to the point as with “The Devil’s Orchard” and its Nietzschesque anthemic chorus “God is dead, God is dead.”

Mikael toyed with us several times… the first being the first non-Heritage song… “this one is from Still Life…” and then they play probably the only slow song on Still Life – “Face of Melinda.”

Oh, the crowd, ever wanting them to bust out into the heavy stuff – the band, ever restrained.

Mikael joked with crowd a bit.  He’s going to grow his beard back.  He’s only mustache’d now, and apparently he got hit on while taking a swim in Portland.  Not that there’s anything wrong with that…

After breaking out the acoustic guitar (yes, at an Opeth show!), Mikael remarked fondly of seeing an acoustic set from Winger.  Some crowd members booed.  He retorted, “well, Winger is better than your band.”  Followed by “Winger is better than this band.”  The crowded booed again and Mikael followed up with, “I’m glad you don’t agree” before starting into their acoustic set…

Opeth’s Setlist: just under 2 hours

• The Devil’s Orchard
• I Feel the Dark
• Face of Melinda
• Porcelain Heart [with drum solo]
• Pyre
• The Throat of Winter [acoustic]
  
• Patterns in the Ivy II [acoustic]
• Closure [acoustic]
• Slither
• A Fair Judgement
• Hex Omega
• Encore: Folklore

Probably the most cruel moment was during the acoustic set…

This one goes back to the Blackwater Park days!

*crowd roar*

Don’t get excited. This wasn’t actually on the album.

All said and done… no growls, no cookie monster vocals… but a fucking amazing Opeth show.  The tour is really showing off that Opeth is more than just “Swedish death metal.”  They’re great performers, great musicians.  They can be melodic and still rock our faces off.  Sure, I’d love a “The Leper Affinity” appearance, but I enjoy the more subdued Damnation/Heritage sound that they put forth this time out.  Accessible?  Maybe.  Quality? Definitely!

iPhone photos… all I got… *sadface*

The Appropriate Linkage:

• Opeth’s Site
• Opeth’s Social Media Links (see below)
  
• Katatonia’s Site
• Katatonia‘s Facebook / MySpace / Twitter
• My Other Related Reviews~
  • Opeth & Enslaved @ Roseland (Portland – May 2009)
• Roseland’s Site / Facebook

Check out more tour dates below.

Next show for me… singer-songwriter Jeffrey Foucault @ Cozmic Pizza (Eugene) on 10/20 [yeah, I’m skipping Ryan Adams]…

~Dan – np: Tool – Lateralus

Opeth/Katatonia 2011 North American Tour Dates:

• Sep. 19 – The Palladium @ Worcester, MA
• Sep. 20 – Webster Theater @ Hartford, CT
• Sep. 21 – Webster Hall @ New York, NY
• Sep. 22 – Webster Hall @ New York, NY
• Sep. 23 – Trocadero @ Philadelphia, PA
• Sep. 26 – Newport Music Hall @ Columbus, OH
• Sep. 27 – Expo Five @ Louisville, KY
• Sep. 28 – Cannery Ballroom @ Nashville, TN
• Sep. 29 – Amos’ Southend @ Charlotte, NC
• Sep. 30 – Center Stage @ Atlanta, GA
• Oct. 01 – House of Blues @ Lake Buena Vista, FL
• Oct. 03 – Warehouse Live @ Houston, TX
• Oct. 04 – Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater @ Austin, TX
• Oct. 05 – Granada Theater @ Dallas, TX
• Oct. 06 – The Beaumont Club @ Kansas City, MO
• Oct. 07 – First Avenue @ Minneapolis, MN
• Oct. 08 – Burton Cummings @ Winnipeg, MB
• Oct. 10 – Edmonton Events Centre @ Edmonton, AB
• Oct. 11 – MacEwan Hall Ballroom @ Calgary, AB
• Oct. 13 – Commodore Ballroom @ Vancouver, BC
• Oct. 14 – Knitting Factory Concert House @ Spokane, WA
• Oct. 15 – Showbox SoDo @ Seattle, WA
• Oct. 16 – Roseland Theatre @ Portland, OR
• Oct. 18 – The Warfield @ San Francisco, CA
• Oct. 19 – Mayan Theatre @ Los Angeles, CA
• Oct. 20 – House of Blues @ San Diego, CA
• Oct. 21 – The Fox Theater @ Pomona, CA
• Oct. 22 – Marquee Theatre @ Tempe, AZ
• Oct. 24 – The Complex @ Salt Lake City, UT
• Oct. 25 – Ogden Theatre @ Denver, CO
• Oct. 27 – The Rave @ Milwaukee, WI
• Oct. 28 – Vic Theatre @ Chicago, IL
• Oct. 29 – St. Andrews Hall @ Detroit, MI
• Oct. 30 – Guelph Concert Theatre @ Guelph, ON
• Oct. 31 – Mr Smalls Theatre @ Millvale, PA
• Nov. 01 – Rams Head Live! – Baltimore, MD