«
»
Upcoming Bullshit

HOLY SHIT THE ALBUM ART FOR OPETH’S HERITAGE IS FUCKING AMAZING

 Wednesday, June 1st, 2011 at 12:30pm by

Opeth have just uploaded the cover for their new album, Heritage, to their Facebook page, and hol-ee crap, is it ever cool. I imagine a lot of people will object to the fact that the faces of the band members are in the tree, but I think even that is awesome; it’s very easy to imagine Mikael Åkerfeldt saying, in his usual deadpan manner, “Yeah, put our faces in the tree, that’s metal.”

I’m saying I feel like this is incredibly epic and metal, but in no way takes itself too seriously.

Opeth’s Heritage is tentatively scheduled for a September release via Roadrunner.

-AR

Thanks to Tim for the tip!

Tags: , ,
  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Drew-Goodwine/1693216336 Drew Goodwine

    It reminds me of 70′s prog. Awesome.

    • Gipson

      I don’t mind the album looking like 70s prog, as long as it doesn’t sound like 70s prog.

      (That’s nothing against 70s prog, mind you, but come on, not from Opeth.)

      • http://www.facebook.com/people/Drew-Goodwine/1693216336 Drew Goodwine

        Yeah…

      • Conor

        Have you listened to an Opeth solo? Ever?

      • http://moonchild- moonchild-

        actually this WILL be in the style of 70′s prog from opeth. They said that themselves, and there will no NO growling. It’s not like opeth haven’t done a prog rock album before.

  • Brian

    Are they putting out a progressive folk album? I mean, I like the art, but what is this doing as an Opeth cover?

    • matycee

      totally agree…too silly for these guys. really? following up GR and Watershed with a cartoon?

      • narcolepticum

        why not? it’s a nice cartoon…

  • James M.

    When I first saw it I thought it was something out of The Wizard of Oz.

  • Anthony

    I don’t like it at all.

    • http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/62449cbe5ea8d22bcc2e76890fceaa37?s=80 LordBling

      Yeah, well, that’s like, your opinion man.

  • GoingDeaf?

    This would be much better if they left their heads out of it… looks kind of silly.

    • ACoffinShip

      Yeah, this. I like it alright with the heads, but I’d think it were really great without ‘em.

    • Johnny Blaze

      Yep, the goofy band heads ruin it big time.

      • jonny

        I really don’t like the heads. Overall though it’s okay. it would be so much better if it had a darker tone.

  • Kuranes

    Very classic. Akerfeldt has a great sense of history, like his take on Deep Purple’s album cover for their live album: http://www.mindovermetal.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Opeth-In-Live-At-The-Royal-Albert-Hall.jpg

  • A normal human like the rest of you

    That looks awesome. Refreshing and very 70′s prog. Also I’ve never seen a tree with a unibrow!

  • Peter

    I love opeth, but if this isn’t them trying to be funny with the heads in the tree…. Well I’m not sure what to think of this.

  • bucketochicken

    Oh god I hope this is real, because so many people (read: idiots) will be so angry.

    • EmmureRules

      Amen. People are so close-minded. Take Emmure for example, a great band, but no one gives them a real listen.

      • http://www.facebook.com/people/Jared-Schilling/100001713332187 Jared Schilling

        lol, you are a funny guy.

  • cyrollan

    It’s great, I agree. But it just isn’t consistent with all the other bleak covers! In some twisted way the old, bleak covers had a sense of humor too (like “look how DARK we are!”).

  • Trux

    Now this is the first cover of an Opeth album that I dont like….

  • jd091

    Opeth could make a horse’s ass their album cover and I would still love the fuck out of it.

  • Utmu

    I like it, yet I don’t. First of all, I don’t the band members’ heads are in it. Second… skyscrapers in the background… Opeth don’t seem like the kind of band that’s… skyscraper-y. They seem like a small, Scandinavian/English village in the middle of a large forest where ghosts and fairies interact with the townspeople. If you wanna’ light it on fire, sure, go ahead, but at least it’s not skyscrapers. Other than that, I have no problems. I like the coloring though, and overall it’s not terrible… just doesn’t look Opethian.

  • Andrew

    Already got the nerds raging about the album cover, love it.

  • WhozGonnaBurn

    Well, it looks like poop.

    Good thing I buy off of itunes…I’ll just replace the photo with something worth lookin’ at. I’m pretty sure I could google the word Heritage and it’ll come up with a better album cover idea.
    What’s next: Trey & Matt (SouthPark) doing the next Tool album cover?

  • Jon

    Per falling out of the tree is a nice touch, but perhaps a dick move on Mikael’s part.

    • Grymmbear

      I was just gonna make a comment about that. Beat me to it.

    • KvltWalter

      I knew that I wasn’t the only one who caught Per falling off the tree, that’s kinda funny, but unfortunate

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Devon-Czekaj/550092101 Devon Czekaj

    It reminds me of Si On Avait Besoin D’Une Cinquième Saison.
    http://www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=3160

  • metalgod121

    BAD FUCKING ASS.
    I LOVE OPETH. So much symbolism behind this

    • Aghast

      Right. SYMBOLISM.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Dave-Russell/502607112 Dave Russell

    Haha why is everyone bitching about the 70s prog thing? Have you seen their last dvd cover? 70′s prog. Its just their weird sense of humor. I’m betting this album is going to be killer.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ben-Robson/1375985482 Ben Robson

    I love it. As long as the music isn’t as goofy as the album cover, I’m sure it will be great. I’m glad there are people like Akerfeldt who understand that doom-and-gloom music doesn’t have to mean a doom-and-gloom image.

  • OBEY1019

    This cover is awesome…I loved Watershed and I can’t wait to see what this sounds like.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Abdallah-Hamidavi/811105556 Abdallah Hamidavi

    I usually love Opeth’s simple art, but this looks like fucking shit. Hopefully the album is better than this. i

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Jordan-Hilker/1467760176 Jordan Hilker

    Amazing cover art! Its fitting in my opinion as Opeth is one of those rare bands really forging ahead and making unique music. The album reminds me of the 70s progressive movement and the spirit of it that was associated with that movement. This is easily my most anticipated album of 2011!

  • Kisiel

    I hope it’s a fucking joke but probably gonna buy it anyway.

  • lost goat

    i think its pretty cool

    that word “heritage”….makes me think of some wood grain hooray for america conservative thing

  • johan

    It’s funny that so many people hate because it’s not completely serious. They probably knew it would piss off the people that take metal way too serious because they think it should be all about attitude, which is true if you’re in middle school.

    • Andrew

      Pretty much sums it up.

      • EmmureRules

        Yep.

  • Sapien

    I would love to hear Opeth do some ’70s prog…guitar- and mellotron-heavy…damn that would be cool.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Devon-Czekaj/550092101 Devon Czekaj

      Listen to Damnation. XD

  • Steph

    I don’t like it. Looks like a cover for some lame 70s prog band with all the drugged out, meaningless symbolism. Also, since when do Opeth have a ‘sense of humour’? All their other covers (and music) were super gloomy and goth.

    • Gipson

      I’ve always understood it that despite the band’s music and image, Mike himself is actually a pretty goofy guy. Much as I don’t like it, this album cover doesn’t seem beyond him.

  • Shanx!

    Thats pretty funny.

  • KvltWalter

    I’m more excited about this album than even the new Baroness and Mastodon albums combined. Now that there’s album art already, it makes me salivate even more.

  • Wah prog wah wah

    For a site full of metal fans, too many of you just bitch bitch bitch when shit isn’t “dark enough”. Aren’t we supposed to be the least bitchy, like, by nature? Oh well, carry on and go nut in your slayer bandanas while you cy about this..

    • EmmureRules

      But it’s not spooky and depressing enough! Seriously, if you can’t understand the attitude behind this cover you must be immature or boring as fuck.

  • meemperor

    “Yeah, put our faces in the tree, that’s metal.” – I fucking laughed online.

    Also if you’ve never been to an Opeth show you wouldn’t get the sense of humor thing. It’s 95% awesome metal show and 5% awesome stand up comedy car of Åkerfeldt

    • DK0

      Last time he was here (Edmonton) he played a venue in the giant mall and he went on this big story about how he played skeeball until he had enough tickets for a rubber ball.

      His humour is awesome. Just listen to the live album when he does the band introductions and stuff. Just cause you’re creating Death metal doesn’t mean you can’t be a funny guy who doesn’t take it completely seriously.

  • http://crescentshield.com Crescent Shield

    I love the retro vibe on this. Will this be a covers album? The title Heritage and retro art suggest that.

    • Kazz

      They’ve already released the tracklist, and no it’s not a covers album.

  • adam

    I love this cover and I just figured out the head thing! The skulls on the ground are symbolic of past members. Per contributed to this record but he left right after it was finished, so his head is falling off the family tree that is Opeth like those before him in the band. That’s pretty bad ass now that I see it.

  • lost goat

    the people bitching about this cover have never seen the cover art for example paranoid or sabotage

    and how do you even bitch about an album cover because it has symbolism? that means theyre at least trying to convey some idea…..itd be too easy to go “ok,album is done..now go looking for black and white soft focus picture for cover”

    you could always listen to it and look at pictures that you like

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Alejandro-Aldana/683878171 Alejandro Aldana

    i love the album cover, but the faces on the trees look retarded

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Skylar-Strange/1095951788 Skylar Strange

    Awesome! Could end up being one of my top album covers this year!

  • Aaron

    ehhhhhhh i don’t know. When i saw there was a song on the album called “i feel the dark” i was a little worried, and now i’m a little more worried. I don’t know i just like my opeth album covers to be badass, that doesn’t mean i don’t have a sense of humor. And news flash, OPETH’S MUSIC HAS NO SENSE OF HUMOR. I feel like the cover should fit the music, and i feel like this cover will probably not fit the music. Or who knows, maybe it will and I’ll be upset.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Eric-Nguyen/100001285066849 Eric Nguyen

    Without symbolism or any interpretation, the cover is literally showing a group of people migrating from a burning city to eat from a tree that has roots to the depths of hell. If you don’t think that’s badass, then I don’t know what to say.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Amir-Hossein-Sarrafian/1227735670 Amir Hossein Sarrafian

    WHAT?! MIKAEL ISNT SUPPOSE TO BE FUNNY!

    http://28.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ler9ozsYRt1qg07zxo1_400.png

  • Braston

    Opeth could probably vomit on a cd cover and I’d still buy it. Everything they put out is so great.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Matt-Medwin/512603064 Matt Medwin

    Can’t wait to hold the 2xLP of this in my hands. Trippy as fuuuuuuck

  • Greg

    I don’t know what the issue is. That cover is totally unexpected and therefore brilliant.

  • Igottawocket

    I actually love the cover, kinda reminds me of the still life cover. But the faces, no matter how humorous it is or whatever, i feel kind of draw away from an otherwise awesome cover. Just my opinion.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Mitch-McGregor/1195550656 Mitch McGregor

    maybe the whole point of the cover and album title is them getting back to their roots? Hence the bandmates faces in the tree, the 70′s prog style artwork, the whole album could just be them going back to an early sound or their old influences etc. I dunno I’m totally trippin’ but that’s my respresentation of it.

  • Philosoraptor

    Unlucky, Per. I’m guessing though he played keyboards on the album to even feature on the cover at all. Either that or Mikael just wants to be the trolldad.
    The most exciting thing about this release will be, however, to see if Mikael has fixed his shitty death vox.

    • Aether Jake

      There are no death vox on this album. So I guess that’s one way to fix it.

      • Philosoraptor

        Good point.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Matthew-Kurtz/1493586117 Matthew Kurtz

    That album cover looks fucking stupid. I like Opeth’s music, but that cover is terrible. Ya know what it reminds me of?

    http://www.411mania.com/siteimages/weathered_81368.jpg

    That, it reminds me of that album cover.

    • Steph

      Oh shit, it totally does.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Jesse-Radon/1099286815 Jesse Radon

      This one isn’t self-serious, or amateurishly Photoshopped.

  • slandroid

    tons of symbolism there. 9 stars in the sky and the sun – the stars being the 9 previous albums, the sun being “heritage”. 10 skulls (with per’s head falling) representing past band members. the city and the people coming to pick the tree have to have some importance. maybe it symbolizes past members being pulled away from the band by their families, society, everyday life, etc. i’m stoked they’re stepping outside of the box even more for this one.

    yeah, i’m a fucking nerd for opeth.

  • Fufkin

    Like it – quite a surprise but very much in the spirit of seventies prog art.

    As for the music to follow, Akerfeldt’s integrity is beyond question. Whatever direction the music goes in I’m sure it’s going to be interesting. One of the few metal bands whose new material I’m very, very excited to hear each time.

  • Margaret

    Who fucking cares. Opeth hasn’t made a bad album yet. If they want to design a cartoon-looking hippy-ish cover, so be it. The music is always killer.

  • lybrium

    KING CRIMSON REFERENCE! yeayea Opeth, can’t wait!

  • Casey

    why does everyone think the faces on the trees suck? I think this is a great album cover all around.

    • Anastasija

      Yeah,dude i agree with you!!!

  • http://profiles.google.com/akashsky Akash Gura Goredo

    To people who dislike the artwork, just remember that you should “never judge a book by its cover”…