Mikael Åkerfeldt Felt Growling “Became an Asset” for Opeth While Recording New Album
When Opeth released the first single off their forthcoming album The Last Will and Testament titled “§1”, people were instantly stoked about the fact that frontman Mikael Åkerfeldt was back to using harsher tones and growling. It was a return to form in many peoples’ eyes, but during a recent interview with United Rock Nations (as transcribed by Blabbermouth), he saw it as something else entirely.
“I wanted to try it out. I had been thinking, and we had been talking in the band that we should, maybe we could try and see what happens if we write something that’s slightly heavier. And I felt I wanted to try and see if I could write music and fit that type of vocals on to new music. And I hadn’t done that for many years… It’s been a while. So I wrote a few parts and tried the death metal vocals, and it sounded awesome. Besides, it also provided a different voice to this character in the story. It became an asset that I haven’t really had the need for, for the last four albums. But now it was an asset that actually could be beneficial for the whole concept, for the whole record. It sounded awesome too. I’m happy.”
To say fans have been eagerly waiting for this album would be an understatement. Following the initial reaction, fans online expressed their unadulterated excitement for it’s then October 11 release. Unfortunately, production delays forced the album to come out November 22, delaying everything by more than a month.
Recently, Åkerfeldt complained that too many people were focusing on the growling aspect while chatting with Ola Englund on the Coffee With Ola YouTube show.
“I don’t have social media. Obviously, the record is not out yet, so I haven’t read any reviews, but I’m on YouTube, believe it or not, every now and then, so I’ve seen some comments and videos, ‘Oh, my god, OPETH is back. Mikael’s back,’ that type of thing. And yeah, there are some screams on there. And it’s cool that they appreciate it. It’s also slightly annoying.”
Still, Opeth’s 14th full-length album is shaping up to be an absolute killer, with the singles that have already hit the internet. The Last Will and Testament will be released on November 22, but you can preorder your copy today. If you’d like to catch Opeth live, you can do so at any of the North American dates, or at the newly announced European tour dates, listed below.
OPETH North American Tour Dates (w/ TRIBULATION):
10/11: Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave / Eagles Club
10/12: Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theater & Ballroom
10/14: Toronto, ON @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre
10/15: Montréal, QC @ L’Olympia
10/16: Worcester, MA @ Palladium
10/18: Brooklyn, NY @ Kings Theatre
10/19: Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
10/20: Washington, DC @ Warner Theatre
10/22: Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
10/23: New Orleans, LA @ Fillmore New Orleans
10/24: Austin, TX @ Emo’s Austin
10/25: Dallas, TX @ Majestic Theatre
10/27: Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom
10/29: Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren
10/30: Los Angeles, CA @ YouTube Theater
10/31: San Francisco, CA @ The Warfield
OPETH European Tour Dates 2025:
02/09: Helsinki (FI) @ Ice Hall
02/11: Stockholm (SE) @ Cirkus
02/12: Oslo (NO) @ Sentrum Scene
02/14: Copenhagen (DK) @ DR Koncerthuset
02/15: Hamburg (DE) @ Docks
02/17: Cologne (DE) @ Palladium
02/18: Berlin (DE) @ Tempodrom
02/19: Munich (DE) @ Muffathalle
02/21: Paris (DR) @ L’Olympia
02/22: Amsterdam (NL) @ AFAS Live
02/23: Brussels (BE) @ Ancienne Belgique
