Damnation (album)
| Company type | studio album |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 22 April 2003 |
| Founder | Opeth |
| Products | Progressive rock album |
Damnation represents the seventh full-length release by the Swedish progressive metal group Opeth, launched on 22 April 2003. This album arrived five months following Deliverance, with both records having been captured during the same recording sessions. It stands as the final Opeth album produced by Steven Wilson, who subsequently handled mixing duties on Heritage and Pale Communion. Lead vocalist Mikael Åkerfeldt dedicated these two albums to his grandmother, who tragically passed away in a car accident amid the recording process.
Stylistically, the album marked a notable shift from Opeth's traditional death metal sound, featuring exclusively clean vocals and guitars alongside a prominent use of the Mellotron. The musical direction drew heavily from 1970s progressive rock, particularly influenced by the British band Camel. It deliberately avoided heavy riffs and rapid tempos, yet garnered widespread critical praise and attracted a broader fan base. This success culminated in the 2003 release of the live DVD Lamentations.
Production
Similar to Deliverance, Damnation was recorded under demanding conditions at Nacksving Studios and Studio Fredman. While most of the instrumentation was tracked there, Åkerfeldt recorded his vocal parts at Wilson's No Man's Land studio in the United Kingdom shortly after his grandmother’s funeral.
Critical reception
Mike Stagno from Sputnikmusic commended Damnation as a progressive rock work that departs from Opeth’s extreme metal origins, ranking it among the finest recent albums. Ned Raggett of Pitchfork emphasized the album's achievement in succeeding without incorporating death metal elements, highlighting the band's technical proficiency on what he described as "the most surprising and entertaining album" in their catalogue.
In 2014, TeamRock placed Damnation at number 91 on their list of the "Top 100 Greatest Prog Albums of All Time," recognizing it as Opeth’s initial complete shift away from metal and applauding Mikael Åkerfeldt’s songwriting as surpassing that found on its heavier counterpart, Deliverance.
Loudwire ranked Damnation as the second-best album released in 2003, while Dream Theater’s drummer Mike Portnoy included it among his favorite albums from that year.
Notes
- A music video was created for an edited version of "Windowpane".
- The chorus melody in "To Rid the Disease" originates from Mikael Åkerfeldt's side project Sörskogen's composition "Mordet i Grottan".
Opeth
- Opeth – engineering
- Mikael Åkerfeldt – lead guitar and vocals
- Peter Lindgren – rhythm guitar
- Martín Méndez – bass guitar
- Martin Lopez – drums
Additional personnel
- Steven Wilson – keyboards, piano, mellotron, backing vocals, mixing, mastering, production, engineering
- Travis Smith – artwork
- Fredrik Reinedahl – engineering
Weekly charts
| Chart (2003) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA) | 54 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) | 97 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) | 37 |
| French Albums (SNEP) | 112 |
| UK Albums (OCC) | 181 |
| US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard) | 10 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard) | 14 |
| US Billboard 200 | 192 |
Monthly rankings
| Chart (2003) | Highest rank |
|---|---|
| Polish Albums (ZPAV) | 76 |