With Opeth’s next album, In Cauda Venenum, coming out this month, guitarist Fredrik Åkesson spoke on the Scars And Guitars podcast with Andrew McKaysmith about what the recording process was like:
“I think we really went the extra mile when it came to recording when it comes to choosing the right tones, amps, guitars, et cetera,” said Åkesson. “Also the fact that we did rehearse properly before we entered the studio. We hadn’t done that since the ‘Watershed’ album. I’ve always been pushing for that, and this time around, we did it.”
When asked about how involved record labels have been with Opeth’s records, he said: “Mikael [Åkerfeldt], who writes the majority of the stuff, doesn’t really care. He’s very artistic. He likes his artistic freedom, and so does the band. The label can’t tell us what to do. They have absolutely no input whatsoever when it comes to the creative process. I think it’s always been like that with Opeth.”
And what about fans who miss the death-metal style of older-day Opeth? “Maybe one of these days, Mikael will bring out the growls again. Who knows?,” teased Åkesson. “His growl is actually better than ever when we play now. It’s very guttural. It’s more mean-sounding than in a long time, I think. We still think it’s really fun to play those classics live, and we will still continue with that.”
