OPETH's Mikael Akerfeldt -

OPETH's Mikael Akerfeldt - "Music Now Reflects Our Past..."

Spain's Hall Of Metal webzine has issued an interview with OPETH singer/guitarist/composer Mikael Akerfeldt. The following is an excerpt from the interview:

Q: This new album (Watershed) is the ninth in your career. How do you define Opeth at this moment in time?

A: "Well, probably music now reflects our past, and things we have learned, we can expand in new directions from the first album to now. In the new album we try to develop sounds that we have never did, take care of the quality of the songs. If we do the same album again and again it won’t be fun!"

Q; Let’s talk about the new album. After listening to it a few times, we could say that it has all the elements that define Opeth, but it takes them to another dimension, creating something absolutely new. Tell us a little about the composing process of the album, and your main influences.

A: "I wrote the album back home, and I wrote the songs on my own apart one with Fredrik, he helped me with the arrangements and he’s a good songwriter. There will be a couple of songs in the special edition. I bought a new studio in my home which allow me to record the demos and complete the songs, and do whatever I want, I don’t have to wait, and I can complete them, it’s fantastic. I was writing the material for around a year, I record the complete album, I could listen it before being recorded, everyone in the band could listen it, it was interesting process with this album."

Read the full interview at Hall Of Metal.

As previously reported, Opeth's new album Watershed is due out on June 3rd in North America - a day earlier internationally via Roadrunner. The album will be released as a Regular Edition CD and Collector's Edition two-disc CD/DVD and Limited Edition 180-gram Vinyl.

Watershed tracklisting:
'Coil', 'Heir Apparent',
'The Lotus Eater',
'Burden',
'Porcelain Heart',
'Hessian Peel',
'Hex Omega'.

The Collector's Edition 2-disc CD/DVD set includes three bonus tracks - 'Bridge Of Sighs' from ROBIN TROWER's 1974 album of the same title, 'Den Ständiga Resan' (sung in Swedish) by Marie Fredriksson as well as the classic ALICE IN CHAINS song, 'Would?' - 5.1 audio mix of the entire album, extensive video content, and expanded artwork.

Limited Edition 180-Gram Double LP Set includes bonus track, exclusive poster and expanded artwork and more.

Watershed was recorded at Fascination street studios during November 1 and December 13. Some additional recordings were done between January 3rd and 7th. Produced by Jens Bogren and Mikael Åkerfeldt and Opeth.