Opeth

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Opeth
Ghost Reveries lineup, from left: Peter Lindgren, Martin Mendez, Mikael Åkerfeldt, Martin Lopez, Per Wiberg
Ghost Reveries lineup, from left: Peter Lindgren, Martin Mendez, Mikael Åkerfeldt, Martin Lopez, Per Wiberg
Background information
Origin Flag of Sweden Stockholm, Sweden
Genre(s) Progressive Metal
Melodic Death Metal
Progressive Rock
Progressive Death Metal
Fusion
Years active 1990 - present
Label(s) Candlelight Records
Century Black
Peaceville Records
Koch Records
Music for Nations
Roadrunner Records
Website opeth.com
Members
Mikael Åkerfeldt
Peter Lindgren
Martin Mendez
Martin "Axe" Axenrot
Per Wiberg
Former members
David Isberg
Andreas Dimeo
Kim Pettersson
Johan DeFarfalla
Stefan Guteklint
Mattias Ander
Nick Döring
Anders Nordin
Martin Lopez

Opeth is a progressive death metal band from Sweden. Opeth adds several lighter elements to their music, such as acoustic guitar interludes, influences from jazz, 1970s progressive rock, blues and folk. Vocalist Mikael Åkerfeldt performs both clean singing and death vocals. Due to their unique blend of melodic and progressive elements, they are said not to conform to any specific metal sub-genre, though many would argue that they are merely progressive death with a few new elements, and not a completely ambiguous genre. Åkerfeldt said in a recent interview: "I don't see the point of playing in a band and going just one way when you can do everything. It would be impossible for us to play just death metal; that is our roots, but we are now a mishmash of everything, and not purists to any form of music. It's impossible for us to do that, and quite frankly I would think of it as boring to be in a band that plays just metal music. We're not afraid to experiment, or to be caught with our pants down, so to speak. That's what keeps us going."[1] Opeth have also been influential in the doom metal genre[citation needed] and have attracted a lot of doom metal fans.[citation needed] The name Opeth was taken from the novel Sunbird by author Wilbur Smith, and was originally spelled Opet. In the book, Opet is the name of the location for an ancient empire which translates to "City of the Moon".[1]

Contents

[edit] History

Opeth was formed in Stockholm, Sweden in 1990 by David Isberg. Isberg invited Mikael Åkerfeldt to join the band at a practice session as a bass player, but failed to inform the current bass player or any of the other members of the band. All band members except for Isberg quit, and Åkerfeldt soon joined Opeth after his band, Eruption, faltered. With Åkerfeldt on guitar and David Isberg on vocals, Opeth still had a lack of members, and was not doing well. Needing more musicians, they were joined by long-time friend of Åkerfeldt and former Eruption drummer Anders Nordin and Nick Döring on bass. Andreas Dimeo was recruited as a second guitarist. Rehearsing in an elementary school with old equipment they had found,[2] this lineup lasted less than a year and only played one show. In 1991 they spent the summer rehearsing on the island of Hamnholmen outside Stockholm with their old school friend and bass player Max Jaderberg who suggested a more prominent bass sound.

After their first performance, Andreas Dimeo and Nick Döring quit the band. For the second performance, guitarist Kim Pettersson and bassist Johan DeFarfalla joined the group. After the show, DeFarfalla left, not to return until 1994. Pettersson stuck with the band for another show before leaving in late 1991. For that show they got Peter Lindgren to play the bass, but once Pettersson left, Lindgren returned to the guitar, his original instrument.

Isberg left the band in early 1992 due to creative differences and since Mikael had experience as a vocalist from the group Eruption, he became the new vocalist, and immediately began writing material with Peter Lindgren. They rehearsed as a 3-piece for more than a year, but eventually found a new bass player, Stefan Guteklint, who played with them for about a year.

After the band received a contract from Candlelight Records, Stefan Guteklint was removed. They recorded their first album, Orchid, in 1994 with Johan DeFarfalla as a session bass player. He eventually became a full-time member. Candlelight Records released their debut album in 1995. In 1997 it was released in the United States by Century Media Records. Opeth themselves handled the production and Dan Swanö was the engineer.

Opeth's second album, Morningrise, was recorded in March and April of 1996 and released later that year. Again Dan Swanö was the engineer and this time he also handled the production. The album contains five songs, ranging in length from 10 to 20 minutes. Black Rose Immortal, the twenty-minute track, remains Opeth's longest song. Opeth's first European tour, a 26 date tour together with Cradle of Filth,[3] followed the release of Morningrise. After the tour, Johan DeFarfalla was kicked out of the band, and Anders Nordin quit, moving to Brazil.[4]

Their third album, 1998's My Arms, Your Hearse saw the addition of Martin Lopez, formerly of Amon Amarth, on drums. Shortly before the recording of this album, Martin Mendez, a friend of Lopez, was recruited as Opeth's bass player, but lacked the time to learn Opeth's material, so Åkerfeldt played bass for the recording. The band also enlisted the help of acclaimed Swedish producer Fredrik Nordström, who has worked with other notable bands such as Arch Enemy, In Flames, and Dark Tranquillity.

My Arms, Your Hearse exhibited a change in writing style. Instead of the 10+ minute epic tracks found on Morningrise, My Arms, Your Hearse contains shorter songs, with most songs being between six and a half and eight minutes long. The album was lyrically a concept album, darker than the prior release, with acoustic transitions playing a smaller role. Mikael's vocal style also took on a deep and menacing death metal-influenced tone. The album contains Demon of the Fall, a fan favourite and often played as an encore at live shows. The final song, Epilogue, is a 4-minute outro. This was Opeth's last album to be released with Candlelight Records. Martin Lopez' jazz-influenced drumming on this record was met with great critical acclaim.[citation needed]

Opeth's fourth album, 1999's Still Life, released under Peaceville Records, is another concept album which centres on the tale of a man's love for a woman called Melinda and his return from exile to find her, upon which they are both executed. Åkerfeldt named his daughter Melinda in honour of the character[citation needed]. Again produced by Fredrik Nordström, the album marked a return to the more balanced sound of Morningrise, contrasting stripped-down acoustic guitar melody with death metal elements. Still Life is considered by some to be a major turning point in the evolution of Opeth's sound. It is the first release that was recorded with Martin Mendez on bass, and was only rehearsed twice as a full band.[5] Still Life was originally scheduled for release in late September of 1999, but was postponed to October 4, and later to October 18, the final release date.

Opeth's fifth album, 2001's Blackwater Park, released under Music for Nations, received critical and commercial success in North America.[citation needed] The album displayed a stronger metal influence. Opeth brought in Porcupine Tree frontman Steven Wilson to produce the album, as well as sing backing vocals and play some guitar and piano parts.[6]

2002's Deliverance, also produced by Steven Wilson and released under Music for Nations, reached Billboard magazine's top-100 heatseeker chart. It contains five ten-plus-minute songs, the first album to do so since Morningrise, and an instrumental track clocking at a little over 2 minutes. Opeth continued their experimentation with time signature changes and syncopation, notably in the intro and outro to Deliverance, where the intro being played in 7/8 time and the outro showcases heavy syncopation, and in By the Pain I See in Others, the album's closing track.

Their seventh album, Damnation, recorded simultaneously with Deliverance, was entirely void of the musical elements of death metal and instead showcased a 1970s progressive rock vibe. The album was also produced by Steven Wilson, who contributed backing vocals and keyboards, and co-wrote one song, Death Whispered a Lullaby. Mikael Åkerfeldt dedicated Deliverance and Damnation to his grandmother, who died in a car accident during the recording.[7]

In 2004, Opeth released Lamentations (Live at Shepherd's Bush Empire 2003), a DVD release of a two-hour live performance at Shepherd's Bush Empire in London, England. The show was divided into two sets. In the first set, Opeth performed the entire Damnation album in order, plus Harvest from Blackwater Park. The second set included heavier tracks from Blackwater Park and Deliverance. Also on Lamentations is a one-hour documentary about the recording of the Damnation and Deliverance albums, featuring all four members of the band and Steven Wilson, each talking about Opeth, Deliverance, Damnation, and the recording process.

During the Deliverance tours, Opeth brought in Per Wiberg (Spiritual Beggars) to play keyboards. Shortly thereafter, he was confirmed as the band's fifth member.

Opeth entered the studio on March 15, 2005 to record their next album, entitled Ghost Reveries. In many ways the logical culmination of everything Opeth had tried over their last three albums, Ghost Reveries also resumed several threads in their music that had been largely abandoned. These were the first songs dealing with occult themes Åkerfeldt had written in fifteen years, and it was the band's first release since My Arms, Your Hearse to be extensively rehearsed. Although the band's official forum was temporarily closed on July 23, 2005 [2] to prevent leaks of Ghost Reveries, it nevertheless spread across several BitTorrent and P2P networks several weeks before its release date. The album was released to nearly universal acclaim[citation needed] on August 30, 2005 under Roadrunner Records. Ghost Reveries is sometimes referred to as a concept album, as Åkerfeldt originally intended it to be. With the addition of the song Isolation Years which had nothing to do with the original concept, Åkerfeldt decided against creating a full concept album.[citation needed]

In an interview conducted in January 2006,[8] Peter Lindgren commented that Lopez's future with the band was uncertain. On May 12, 2006, Martin Lopez officially left Opeth, due to illness and anxiety attacks. Martin Axenrot became Lopez's permanent replacement, having played with Opeth for the last 5 tours and the BBC recordings on a previously temporary basis.

July 24, 2006, Dave Mustaine announced that Opeth would be performing on the main stage of Gigantour 2006, along with Megadeth, Lamb of God, and Arch Enemy. The tour kicked off on September 6 in Boise, Idaho and ended on October 8 in Orlando, Florida.

A special edition of Ghost Reveries was released on October 31, 2006, containing a bonus track (a cover of Deep Purple's "Soldier Of Fortune"), 5.1 surround mix, a bonus booklet and DVD documentary.

The 9 November show at the Roundhouse in Camden, London was filmed for a possible DVD release.

Opeth also plan to record and release a new album sometime in 2007; Mikael Åkerfeldt has started writing songs for its release, and is also working on an as of yet unnamed side project as stated on the official Opeth website.[9]

[edit] Notable side projects

Current projects include a collaboration between Mikael, Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree) and Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater)[3] and Lopez' solo project.

Aside from these, all the members were involved in numerous other, minor projects.

[edit] Discography

[edit] Studio albums

Cover Date of Release Title Label
1995 Orchid Candlelight Records/Century Black
1996 Morningrise Candlelight Records/Century Black
August 18, 1998 My Arms, Your Hearse Candlelight Records/Century Black
October 18, 1999 Still Life Peaceville Records
February 27, 2001 Blackwater Park Music For Nations
November 4, 2002 Deliverance Music For Nations
April 14, 2003 Damnation Music For Nations
August 30, 2005 Ghost Reveries Roadrunner Records
2007 Untitled Ninth Studio Album Roadrunner Records

[edit] Singles

Cover Date of Release Title Label
2001 The Drapery Falls Koch Records
2003 Still Day Beneath the Sun Robotic Empire Records
2006 The Grand Conjuration Roadrunner Records

[edit] Live albums

Cover Date of Release Title Label
2004 Lamentations Music For Nations
2007 Untitled DVD Roadrunner Records

[edit] Other

Cover Date of Release Title Label
October 17, 2006 Opeth Box Set Koch Records

[edit] Band lineup

[edit] Current members

[edit] Former members

[edit] Notes

According to an interview with Peter Lindgren and Mikael Åkerfeldt in Terrorizer #146, the two recorded songs for a joke band under the name Steel. Peter Lindgren stated "We actually had a project for fun called Steel, which we recorded in Dan Swanö's studio, and it sounded like HammerFall. And then they came out doing this, but for them it wasn't a joke." Mikael Åkerfeldt followed with "I know they weren't joking, because Dan called me up and said, 'Steel is dead. There's this new band and they're so much better.'"

[edit] References

  1. ^ Metal Hammer: Mikael Akerfeldt Interview
  2. ^ Opeth Biography, Chapter 2
  3. ^ Opeth Biography, Chapter 3
  4. ^ Opeth Biography, Chapter 4
  5. ^ Opeth Biography, Chapter 4
  6. ^ Opeth Biography, Chapter 5
  7. ^ Opeth Biography, Chapter 8
  8. ^ The Moor; Opeth Interview
  9. ^ Official Opeth Website

[edit] External links

[edit] Fan Websites

Opeth
Mikael Åkerfeldt | Peter Lindgren | Martin Mendez | Martin Axenrot | Per Wiberg
David Isberg | Andreas Dimeo | Kim Pettersson | Johan DeFarfalla | Stefan Guteklint | Mattias Ander | Nick Döring | Anders Nordin | Martin Lopez
Discography
Studio Albums: Orchid | Morningrise | My Arms, Your Hearse | Still Life | Blackwater Park | Deliverance | Damnation | Ghost Reveries
Singles: The Drapery Falls | Still Day Beneath the Sun | The Grand Conjuration
Live Albums: Lamentations

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