Just like Immortal did the week before, Swedish death metallers Opeth only booked two shows in the U.S. -- one in New York and the other in Los Angeles. Usually frontman Mikael Åkerfeldt asks the crowd if they were at the band's last show. "Who was at the Vintage Vinyl show?" I've heard him ask the crowd a couple times now. He usually tells us about the quality of his flight in and other random things we may or may not want to know.

However, the first half of this Opeth show -- which took place at Terminal 5 on April 7 -- was all business. After they played 'Blackwater Park' in its entirety, I was starting to doubt I was at a true Opeth show. Unless you were in the immediate front of the crowd, the headbanging and mosh pits were lackluster. I guess everyone else saved their energy in preparation for what would be a three-hour set. There were no opening bands, but really, three hours is still a long time.

After they played the album everyone wanted to hear, the band took a 10-minute break. And then Åkerfeldt became himself again, and this Noisecreep writer felt at ease.

"I had some type of f---ing meatball sandwich right before I got on stage," he said to the crowd. Before playing one song off each album, in chronological order, Åkerfeldt gave the crowd a bit of history for each song.

The show was in tribute to the band's 20th anniversary. The New York show was one of six worldwide. After the sixth show in L.A., the band plans on writing their 10th album, which will be the follow-up to 2008's 'Watershed.'

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