My Arms, Your Hearse [EXTRA TRACKS]

Opeth

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 14, 2003)
• Original Release Date: October 14, 2003
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks
• Label: Candlelight
• ASIN: B0000E1WMJ
• In-Print Editions: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #18,153 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Reissue of the band's 1998 album, considered to be their best. This release includes two extra tracks 'Remember Tomorrow' and a remake of the Celtic Frost classic 'Circle of the Tyrant'. Candlelight. 2003.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "the day wept on my shoulders.", January 13, 2004

By	Lord Chimp (Monkey World) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This is my favorite Opeth masterpiece. Initially, when Opeth was still new to me, it was my least favorite. It has the dreariest, grittiest production, few acoustic guitar parts (and they are mostly short), and seems even more sonically oppressive and bleak than anything else they've done. But this album is AMAZING. It is a concept album about a ghost who seems not to realize that he's dead and he observes his lost love after his passing. "Karma" seems to be where he becomes aware of his demise and it's crushing (the scream!!! it's all about that scream). _My Arms, Your Hearse_ is heavier than _Orchid_ and _Morningrise_ but no less melodic and captivating in its evocative, spellbinding musical progression. From the haunting sounds of rain and ethereal piano notes of "Prologue", to the tidal wave of melodic riffs in "April Ethereal", to the longing, forlorn acoustic ending of "When", to the hellfire assault of "Demon of the Fall", to the smothering finality of "Karma", to the soul-melting, aching melodies of "Epilogue", MAYH is a masterpiece with few peers. No fan of progressive metal should be without this, and anyone who didn't really "get it" is strongly encouraged to give it another chance.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Flawless - a great band's greatest album, April 19, 2004

By	Paul Mackie "pmacattack84" (Decorah, IA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Very seldom does a metal band come along that can truly mesh mind-blowing beauty with visceral power. Opeth has long been known for their ability to walk this line with probably more grace than any other band ever, and on My Arms Your Hearse their craft is at its peak.

Their grooving rhythm style is in force here, but retains some of the more aggressive rhythms of their two earlier efforts, a balance best seen on the chorus of Demon of the Fall. The result is a very hard-driving section that arouses harder headbanging than most future Opeth works. They would also never quite be as beautiful during their heavy groove sections. April Ethereal is quite possibly my favorite song of all time now due to the balance struck between that pounding brutality and awe-inspiring, majestic beauty. Later Opeth efforts tend to polarize the songs, with a monster-headbanging-heavy part followed by a stunning acoustic part. While these are also great albums, there's something special in MAYH's balance - it seems more sublime than Deliverance or even Blackwater Park.

This is the first effort by the current Opeth lineup. Bassist Johan DeFarfalla and drummer Anders Nordin had recently moved on and been replaced by the Martins - Mendez (bass) and Lopez (drums), both of whom bring entirely new feels to the rhythm section. Mikael Akerfeldt's clean voice has not matured to the fullest but is still incredibly beautiful, and his growls are as forceful as ever. Guitarists Peter Lindgren and Akerfeldt together master incredibly complex and dense harmony passages that are far more technically difficult than they sound. While their style may put off fans of pure technical flash, more thoughtful listeners will appreciate their depth and power, and may ultimately be touched in a way that few (if any) other bands can top.

There's something here for any fan of rock music. Absolutely perfect. Recommended tracks: April Ethereal (best song ever), Demon of the Fall, Credence.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quite simply Opeth's best album, March 3, 2006

By	Justin Bean "Post-college Twenty-something wh... (Ann Arbor, MI) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Opeth may be the most difficult band to 'get into' for someone new to their catalogue. Unlike most metal bands that manage to release two, maybe three albums that are considered solid, Opeth has released 8 albums, each of which has stood the test of time in a genre whose audience's tastes seem to be in constant, dramatic flux. Discounting Orchid and Morningrise, both respectable early works that are mandatory if one is to comprehend Opeth's musical evolution, that leaves six albums to digest. Add to this the fact that Opeth writes epics that demand repeated listenings, and it becomes clear why listening to Opeth is indeed a formidable investment.

As many reviewers have said, My Arms, Your Hearse is a great album for someone new to Opeth. I would argue that Blackwater Park and Still Life are equally worthy of such accolades, but it is my belief that to get someone hooked on a band, you must play them the band's finest work, which for Opeth is My Arms, Your Hearse. One could easily write ten pages about Opeth. Their music reaches a compositional depth and complexity that no metal band I can think of has managed. Certainly Opeth takes inspiration from a handful of predecesors, but from the diverse assortment of bands and performers that is their influence Opeth has truly created a genre within which only they perform.

My Arms, Your Hearse is not Opeth's most polished album, nor, I would argue, is it their most thematically complete (see, Blackwater Park). What makes MAYH Opeth's finest work is a combination of several factors. Being Opeth's third release, MAYH is somewhere between the profound maturity and coherence found on later releases such as Blackwater Park and Deliverance and the more adventurous, youthful (or less focused) song writing heard on Morningrise and Orchid.

The atmospheric jazz interludes of MAYH are some of Opeth's most memorable and their live set attests to the aural beauty of any song off this album. And it is no wonder that Opeth consistently closes their sets with Demon of the Fall, arguably the most haunting and intense song the band has written.

I bought this album in 9th grade because a sticker on the front compared them to In Flames who at the time I was enjoying (this was between Whoracle and Colony, before In Flames stopped being worth listening to) so I figured I would invest in my small but growing metal collection. It took me a year to fully appreciate this album, a year before I stopped listening for parts that sounded like In Flames (of which there aren't many) and realized what a veritable masterpiece I had stumbled upon.

If you read other reviews you can get a better idea of the band's music, but hopefully I have articulated why this album, and this band, is worth investing one's self in. Because Opeth demands an investment. They are not a band for three minutes car rides or the CD player between class (although I've used them for both). To appreciate what Opeth has to offer means sitting for a half hour or longer and simply listening. After doing this five, six times and each time hearing different aspects of their music, you might begin to understand why I feel I can say that opeth is one of the most important bands in the past 10 years. But you'll have to decide for yourself.