I'm glad this thread got bumped because I've been listening to a little more opeth and I've come to the conclusion that Orchid is by far their best album. Blackwater Park, Morningrise simply for Black Rose Immortal, and Still Life were alright, but ever since Orchid they've been getting less and less good :/. Orchid was great because it was such a mixture of different styles without really trying to sound very meaningful or emotional. Ever since then, paticularly with Deliverance/Damnation (Damnation especially
) they've been trying to put the appearance of emotion and meaning into their songs, but it just comes off as superficial and pretentious.
To me anyway
btw, Opeth are by far the most discussed metal band on these boards