Personally, I think everything Opeth has ever done and ever will do is and will always be awesome. That being said, hearing the band return to its death metal roots would be pretty interesting considering 2008's Watershed was the last time that sound was rolled out. So can we expect to get some Op-death back in our ears anytime soon? According to guitarist for the group Fredrik Åkesson, we almost did on 2014's Pale Communion!
"If the song doesn't request it, it's gonna be a bit cheesy to put it in just to have it as an element there. But it's not ruled out for the future that [we might incorporate that style of vocals into the music again]. It was even talked about to bring it in on this album in one song. The song 'River' was actually gonna be even longer and more freaked out, more extreme at the end. So it was actually talked about."
I still stand by the notion that Opeth's jazzy Heritage record from 2011 was just another awesome deviation like 2003's calmed down Damnation, and now the group is getting back to its usual ways with Pale Communion, which felt like Heritage II: This Time It's Heavier. That's a good thing.
So hey, if the members of Opeth ever collectively decide to incorporate death growls again- cool! If not, whatever. The last two albums have been great and Opeth hardly relies on one dimension of its music to be legendarily amazing.
