Rating: NNNN
Recorded about a year ago, The Roundhouse Tapes is the Swedish progressive death metal band’s second live disc, taken from an impressively thorough performance at London’s Camden Roundhouse.
The main selling point for this is that it captures the band at a high point midway through an extensive tour. It doesn’t take long to clue in to how completely tight they are, and the rich, organic production that finds a happy medium between sheer volume, growling and soaring vocals and the boisterous crowd.
The track list spans the band’s career, and highlights include Ghost Of Perdition and an outstanding and intense version of Blackwater Park. With no song under eight minutes, this set should hold fans over until Opeth’s next opus arrives in 2008.
