Review by Adam M on May 10, 2026.

This was a great album that showed the band embracing a more refined heavy sound that contrasts nicely with Damnation. This is a heavy and dynamic album that is very interesting in its approach. It is a very compelling album that has great highlight like the title track and otherwise. There is an interesting contrast with their Damnation album and this makes this a very versatile work overall.

The musicianship on the album is solid with great guitar playing and solid vocals that hold their part of the bargain. There isn’t really anything outstanding about the performances like there perhaps was on Morningrise. The whole affair is rather heavy and has a great deal of focus on tracks like the title one which make a huge impact. Add in some great production and drumming and you have a complete album.

The problem with the album lies in the fact that it is not as good as their Still Life album in particular and seems to be a small step down from that album. This is still a very thoughtful and compelling piece of work that is one of the better albums from the band. It is very dynamic and punishing at the same time.

Overall, I had a fun time with this album. It is very commanding and offers a nice diversion from their excellent Damnation work. This is a highly impactful work and offers a nice viewpoint into what they are capable of. Progressive death metal of the highest order is to be found here.

Rating: 7.3 out of 10

Review by Allan on November 13, 2002.

When I first heard about Opeth releasing a double album, I was excited for what might come. It wasn’t because I’d have twice the amount of material to listen to (hey, I’m not complaining), but more because I’m hoping that after Åkerfeldt and Co. are done with the second half of this project, “Damnation”, they might be able to come out ahead farther than before. I’m hoping that “Damnation” gives them a new sense of song writing and musicianship, because honestly, watching Opeth’s progression from album to album is a little tedious. I’m certainly not denying that Opeth don’t improve, or at least change a little bit with each album they put out, but so much of it has stayed the same that the new album “Deliverance” barely even surprised me.

What makes “Deliverance” stand slightly apart from all the past efforts of Opeth is the heaviness. “Deliverance” is the heaviest of all the albums that Opeth has ever released, largely due to the fact that the lighter sections are less abundant. However, the fact that “Deliverance” has a much stronger rhythm section also increases the heaviness, as well as some of the riffs themselves.

There is more to “Deliverance” than it being the heaviest of all the Opeth albums. On “Deliverance” Åkerfeldt takes both his guitar and vocal ability up. As for the guitar, Åkerfeldt has thrown many more solos into the songs and they’re duration has increased. Unfortunately, Åkerfeldt also opted for a less acoustic approach on “Deliverance”, maybe because he felt it would hinder the albums ability to be heavy, or maybe because he wanted them to be exclusive to “Damnation”. Either way, it’s disappointing. Vocally, Åkerfeldt has improved in both of his styles – clean and death. While the clean vocals aren’t around as much before, when they do arise they generally tend to blow me away with the emotion that Åkerfeldt puts into them. And as always, Åkerfeldt’s death metal vocals are far beyond what others offer. Sinister and as powerful as ever, Åkerfeldt offers the class and polished sound that nobody else can offer.

Not everything about “Deliverance” is as good as one would hope. One of my biggest problems with “Deliverance” is the theme of the album, or lack thereof. Between the first two songs (‘Wreath’ and ‘Deliverance’) and the last two (‘Master’s Apprentices’ and ‘By The Pain I see In Others’) are two songs. The first, ‘A Fair Judgement’, is one of the best songs on all of “Deliverance”. The problem is that the song doesn’t completely fit in with the other songs, and along with it the somewhat lackluster instrumental ‘For Absent Friends’. Neither of the songs are all and all out of place, but both of them seem like the black sheep of the family.

“Deliverance” truly lacks the cohesion that Opeth reached with “Blackwater Park”, not only with the feel of song by song, but also by the turmoil created within each song itself. Usually the songs and transitions move along excellently, but when you get to a song like ‘By The Pain I See In Others’ where by the end of the song you’re switching gears every other second, you begin to get the feeling that Åkerfeldt just had to many riffs to work with. With that becoming a problem in many parts in each of the various songs, the songs begin to unravel and lose the emotion and feeling they started with. Even then that is another problem that clouds “Deliverance”. Overall I feel that “Deliverance” lacks a lot of the emotion that Opeth has been able to create in the past, maybe due to the atmosphere of the album not being as strong as it should be, or just the way the album was written.

Bottom Line: “Deliverance” is a really good album, however it’s exactly what you would expect from Opeth, and that’s where it hurts them. I was looking for more in “Deliverance” and when I didn’t find anything I didn’t expect, I was disappointed. I guess for now Opeth will remain a band that just stick to what they’re good at, and that is still respectable.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Originality: 7
Musicianship: 9
Atmosphere: 7
Production: 8
Overall: 7

Rating: 7.6 out of 10

Review by Nathan on January 15, 2021.

I like Dissection as much as the next guy, but I know as much as anyone else that Jon Nodtveldt had an ear for melody and composition that was near-unrivaled, and it's a reason why the Swedes continue to be so popular and influential. However, as much as their influence tends to seep through in modern acts, it's rare to find a band that's capable of creating the same sort of sleek, aggressive catchiness without adding an extra style into the mix or otherwise diluting the meloblack essence.

At first glance, Malice Divine looks to be the Canadian version of the newer crop of bands in this vein a la Thulcandra, Uada, Hoth and The Spirit. The cover art's blue/purple tones and crisp, rounded production make the influences for the project very apparent right from the get-go, and the album has a very singular and focused purpose front to back. However, that's not to say that this only has one method of execution, far from it - Malice Divine frequently uses early Ulver-esque acoustic passages and heavier, more paced breaks from the tremolo intensity to give this compositional variety - but even those extra garnishes are part of the equation of riff-focused Dissection worship the way it was meant to be. If you're not a fan of the crisp, clean melodic black metal style, stop reading now, cause that's the only thing Malice Divine is in business to deliver.

Despite such a strict adherence to a style, long songs seldom under the 5 minute mark, and a mixing job that is a bit on the clinical side for my tastes (particularly in the drum sounds), I have no issues listening to this from front to back, with infectious verse riffs frequently snapping me back to full attention and getting my head bobbing. Malice Divine writes songs that feel half as long as they are, knowing exactly how long to carry out a riff before adding a lead, changing pace or going into a solo. Every riff seems individually crafted and polished, with songs like 'Quantum Manifestation' and 'Triumphant Return' being based around these driving riffs that could have been on a later Abbath-era Immortal album no problem.

You'd think that this was a full band's work because of the volume of ideas present, the professionalism and attention to detail, but this is a one-man project with a session drummer. Perhaps a little context helps in this case: this is the solo venture of Ric Galvez, who previously wielded the axe in Astaroth Incarnate and departed, perhaps having more and more ideas that were going in a different direction than the rest of the band's principal songwriters. If you're not familiar with Astaroth Incarnate, they're a mixture of black, death and thrash metal with some emphasis on symphonic elements - it's very clusterfucky, good for its own reasons but when you listen to Malice Divine, you can't help but wonder if Galvez's more focused, gradual songwriting style was being held back in his old band in pursuit of theatrical grandiosity. Wonder no more, because this debut LP showcases the full range of his abilities, while still making sure every rapid-fire solo or extended, noodling interlude is written to serve the song above all else.

Although Galvez is primarily a guitarist and it shows in the way the songs are written, one can't overlook the cold, raspy vocal tone that he showcases in Malice Divine - not sure if it's an effect done during tracking or what, but it's got a natural reverb that gets in your skin, especially during the higher shrieks. Some of the vocal lines are a tad too busy and I personally feel as though spacing out some of the lines may have given them some more impact, but at the same time, some of the faster, choppier verses are equally as catchy as the riffs. I don't really mind that they're a tad high in the mix thanks to the tone and most of the delivery. Really, the production is my only gripe with this - I'd like a little more meat in the guitars and a little less emphasis on the drums and vocals - but I'm able to overlook that a majority of the time because of how well-written the songs are and how fully developed this feels, especially considering it's basically a one-man project. These are problems that are easily fixed on a sophomore release, and Malice Divine still has a solid mission statement of a debut album, with a composure to its songwriting and ear-catching nature to the riffs that should be a welcome addition to the collections of those who worship at the altar of old-school melodic black metal.

Rating: 8 out of 10