My Favorite Bands

KNAC.COM: When you were describing Opeth as a "death metal band" onstage before you seemed almost apologetic. Was that because of the crowd, which was mostly prog-metal fans, or do you genuinely feel that way?

ÅKERFELDT: I guess it's kind of disarming the whole thing. People have this idea of death metal musicians being childish kids with a rough upbringing who aren't really interested in music, they are just lashing out. And they don't see it as a respected art form or music form as jazz or classical, so it's a bit tongue in cheek. But I still love it. It's a great way to express aggression, there's no other music that can express aggression like metal music... But it's good to have a diverse crowd, that's what we like to have. And maybe some people who came to the show tonight thinking death metal was shit changed their minds a little bit after seeing us. And if not, that's OK. We are what we are.




My Role Model