since nobody has mentioned it, it was mixed by Steven Wilson. Not sure if this or The Moor is my favorite album opener of all time.... The Moor has the best first 2 minutes and this one has the best ending.
Can't believe you've never heard Tool, very much give them a spin if you get the chance! As someone else mentioned, Schism would be a good starting place. Love the reaction as well, this whole album is wonderful along with Blackwater Park. Masterpieces.
One of the most impressive aspects of Åkerfeldt's songwriting is that he doesn't always know exactly what he's doing. Since he's completely self-taught and doesn't read music, he writes entirely from intuition and strives to replicate what he hears in his head.
Mostly** self taught if you want to be REALLY percise. Everyone in Sweden has mandatory music classes in school. However, what you learn in these classes is very basic unless you have a genuine interest yourself and you want to learn. But yeah, he's selftaught in like 99% of music and he wouldn't be where he is today if it wasn't for his genuine passion for music.
